


The River's Curse

by starryeyedchar



Series: Lance McClain and the Demigods of Voltron [1]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Voltron: Legendary Defender, also kinda - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Greek Mythology, Alternate Universe - Percy Jackson Fusion, Angst, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Camp Half-Blood, Cuban Lance (Voltron), Demigods, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gay Keith (Voltron), Hurt/Comfort, Langst, M/M, Major Character Injury, Mutual Pining, Pining Keith (Voltron), Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-18
Updated: 2018-01-06
Packaged: 2018-12-16 23:33:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 42,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11839320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starryeyedchar/pseuds/starryeyedchar
Summary: Lance McClain never wanted to be a hero. But he ends up at Camp Half-Blood anyway, thrown headfirst into a quest of danger, destiny, and demigods. Everyone seems to think that he's the chosen one, but... he's just a boy from Cuba.Keith Kogane never wanted to fall in love. He learned at a young age not to get attached to people. Whenever he does, he ends up losing them. So, of course he just had to fall for the one person he knows he shouldn't.Or the Voltron/PJO crossover AU that nobody asked for, but here it is anyway.





	1. Chapter 1

 

_They had to have made a mistake_ , Lance thought, gathering his small number of belongings into a backpack.

Greek mythology was just that; myth. As in, not real. And if it was real, he couldn't possibly be involved. That would be crazy... right?

Sure, he had ADHD and dyslexia, but what did that have to do with anything? It definitely didn't mean he belonged in this weird camp. Lance's family was waiting for him back home— both his parents, and his siblings.

The idea that one of the parents that he'd known all his life wasn't actually... that he could possibly be the child of a...

It was just ridiculous. Lance shouldered the backpack, and stood. He tiptoed around the bodies of the sleeping kids in the Hermes cabin, careful not to step on any toes.

The fact that Lance had yet to be claimed was just more proof to him that he wasn't really supposed to be here. Obviously, they'd made some kind of mistake. They had him confused for someone else.

But there was still that small voice in the back of Lance's head that whispered to him that it would explain a _lot_.

The fact that he always saw things other people didn't. That he could do things other people couldn't. That he'd always felt... different. Like he didn't quite fit.

But still, it was ridiculous. Lance was _not_ a demigod, and he definitely wasn't a hero. He was just... just a boy from Cuba, who wanted to go home.

So that's exactly what he decided to do.

He hesitated for only a second before putting the bow and arrows he'd been using back in the armory, exactly where'd he picked them up two weeks ago.

Even though Lance was surprisingly good when it came to archery, and his aim had impressed that cool child of Hades... even though he loved using it, and it made him feel important for once...

There was just no way Lance would be fighting monsters. He couldn't wrap his mind around it. So, he wouldn't need the bow.

Soon enough, Lance was standing at the crest of the hill, right beside the tall statue that somehow created a magic barrier for Camp Half-Blood.

Lance hadn't paid attention to the details, as usual.

He tugged his jacket on over the orange shirt he still wore, against the somewhat cold night air, and picked the backpack off the ground.

With a final deep breath, he crossed through the barrier, and walked quickly down the other side of the hill.

Lance only looked back once, but it was enough to make tears start to well up in his eyes.

As wonderful as the camp was, it still wasn't home.

So Lance kept walking, unsure of how he'd actually _get_ back to Cuba without any money. He could try and call his family on a payphone or something... the angry kid from the Ares cabin, Keith, had broken his cellphone as soon as he was brought to camp, and neither Pidge nor Hunk could fix it. Apparently, having stuff like that was a red flag to monsters.

Lance fortunately knew both his mom and his house's phone number by heart, but he was still worried that it wouldn't go through, or that his family wouldn't pick up.

“And just _what_ do you think you're doing?” A voice interrupted his thoughts, and he knew exactly who it was even before he turned around to meet the angry purple eyes of none other than Keith, from the Ares cabin.

His hand hovered over the knife sheathed in his belt, and for a moment Lance wished that he had brought the bow, after all.

Keith Kogane was kind of famous among the other half-bloods, as Lance had learned over the past two weeks, but he couldn't see what was so great about him. Supposedly, Keith had been on the run from monsters for a while outside of camp, after running away from home at a young age. He was a year round camper, and an expert when it came to using a both sword _and_ a dagger.

Lance just reveled in the fact that Keith was horrible when it came to target practice, _and_ had somehow managed to flip a canoe.

Keith was also, coincidentally, the only demigod at camp with two magical items. Many people didn't even have _one_ , Lance included, but Keith just _had_ to have two.

He had some sort of silver knife that no one knew how he got. Demigods didn't even _use_ silver, at least not the ones at Camp Half-Blood. Apparently it glowed, and could grow longer, but only if Keith was using it. Lance personally didn't believe a word, but Keith always carried it with him. He also happened to have a celestial bronze sword, which could transform from what appeared to be an ordinary cigarette lighter.

Because of fucking _course_ it could.

“What does it look like I'm doing?” Lance asked, trying not to sound too defensive.

“It _looks_ like you're leaving camp,” Keith narrowed his eyes. “But that can't possibly be true, because you'd have to be even more of an idiot than I thought you were to do that.”

“I'm not an idiot,” Lance muttered under his breath. “I just know I'm not supposed to be here.”

“Not supposed to—?! This is the _one place_ where people like us belong!” Keith stepped towards the other boy. Lance instinctively took a step back.

“But I'm _not_ like all of you,” Lance told him. “I don't belong here! Look, Keith, just go back, alright? If you pretend like you never saw me then you can't get in trouble with Iverson.”

“Where would you even go?”

“Back home,” Lance replied immediately. “Back to my family, in Cuba. That's where I belong.”

Keith just shook his head in disbelief. “You can't possibly think you'll be able to make it all the way to _Cuba_ from here,” he scoffed. “You're a demigod. You'll just get yourself killed along the way.”

“I'M NOT A DEMIGOD!” Lance shouted, finally snapping. Keith stared at him in shock. “I'm... I'm not. Coran must've made some sort of mistake.”

“There's no mistaking it. If you were mortal, you wouldn't have been able to even pass through the barrier!” Keith insisted. “You're a demigod, Lance. You can't deny that now.”

“I'm not, though,” Lance said quietly. “I haven't... I haven't even been _claimed_ yet, and I've been here for weeks. I don't have a godly parent, my parents are back home.”

Keith visibly bristled. “Lots of kids don't get claimed for a while! And it's basically confirmed you're a child of Apollo, with archery skills like yours. Or... well, some other campers think you could be Aphrodite, but—”

“I'M NOT!” Lance was shouting again, but he couldn't find it in himself to care. “I'M A CHILD OF ROSA SANCHEZ AND ALEXANDER MCCLAIN! I DON'T BELONG AT YOUR STUPID CAMP!”

With these words, Lance whirled back around, and continued his fast pace down the hill. After a moment, he heard Keith's footsteps following.

“You're going to get found by monsters before you've even made it halfway,” he informed Lance. “And you haven't even brought your bow.”

“Monsters aren't real,” Lance replied bitterly. “They're made up, and even if they weren't, I don't know what they'd want with me.”

“You _know_ that they're real,” Keith pressed. “Or do you not remember the night that you got here?” Lance shuddered at the mention of it. Those glowing red eyes had haunted his dreams every night for the past two weeks.

“Must've been hallucinating,” Lance mumbled instead. Keith just snorted.

“And you seriously don't know what they'd want with you? Your father is an all powerful being; god of the sun, poetry, healing, and—”

“My father is back in Cuba waiting for me,” Lance interrupted, voice stern. “Same as my mother, and siblings. So, if you don't mind, I've got to get back to them.”

“You seriously think I would let you leave?”

Lance was about to point out that Keith couldn't stop him, before he realized that Keith was the one with the sword. He could very easily do so. “You'll have to drag my corpse back there,” Lance said harshly, instead. “Because I'm not going.”

There was a sharp intake of breath behind him, and Keith's steps stalled briefly before picking up the pace to follow Lance again.

“Jesus, Lance,” was all Keith seemed capable of saying.

Lance just shrugged, and kept walking. Keith followed, trying to find the right words to persuade the taller boy to come back with him, without having to resort to violence.

Soon enough Keith stepped in front of Lance again, seeing no better way to do this. He spread his arms, blocking Lance's path. He reminded himself that this was for the other's own good, but it didn't feel like it with Lance glaring at him.

“I'm sorry, Lance,” Keith said firmly, not sounding sorry at all. “But if you won't come back willingly, then I'll be forced to knock you out and take you there myself.”

Lance simply continued to scowl at the shorter boy, silently contemplating whether or not he could outrun him.

His escape plans were cut short by the earth behind Keith exploding to reveal a giant snake, at least twice the size of them.

Lance had to wonder what his life had come to when his first thought was, _this is the second largest snake that's tried to kill me this month._

Keith started to turn around to look, but the creature was already prepared to strike, and he hadn't even seen it yet. Lance's mind registered in a moment that anything Keith did would be too late, and in that split second he acted.

Lance rushed forward just as the monster dove, forcefully pushing Keith out of the way and putting himself in the snake's path in one movement.

He felt a sharp, searing pinprick of pain, and looked down just in time to see the serpent's head darting away from his side, ripping a shred of fabric from his shirt with it in its fangs.

As the snake moved to strike at Lance again, he found himself once again missing the bow and arrows.

A sharp tug on Lance's hood had him reeling backwards, and he gazed up to see Keith pushing him behind backwards, sword already in hand even though he'd been on the ground just seconds prior.

“I TOLD YOU!” Keith shouted angrily, before swinging the sword down over the creature's head.

With just the one slice, the monster exploded into nothing more than a pile of yellow dust. Keith sighed, returning the celestial bronze blade to its original form as a lighter. “Will you come back to camp NOW?!” he demanded, breathing heavily.

“Hah...” Lance let out a short laugh, which made Keith spin around and glare daggers at him. But when he saw Lance his face paled, all anger replaced with fear in seconds.

Lance was clutching a hand to his side, where blood dripped from between his fingers. As he moved his hand, Keith felt panic begin to set in.

The bite mark was small, barely bleeding. Just two dots of red, really. The skin around it, however, was starting to turn a sickly shade of green.

Poison.

“You pushed me out of the way because it was going to attack me,” Keith realized. “And... it bit you instead. Why would you... _why_?”

“It's fine,” Lance said, voice already uneven. “I just didn't.... didn't h-have time to do anything e-else. We'll... we'll be o-okay.” His knees started to shake underneath him.

“Lance,” Keith stumbled forward, blood rushing in his ears. _This can't be happening_.

“G-Guess you'll... you'll really have to d-d-drag my c-corpse back th... there,” he struggled to get the words out, vision already fading around the edges.

The last thing Lance saw was Keith suddenly rushing forward, and then his eyes rolled back into his head as he collapsed.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did tell you updates would be fairly quick, didn't I? I'm having a lot of fun writing this AU.

Lance's eyes rolled back into his head, and Keith rushed forward to catch him before he fell onto the grass.

“Lance,” Keith choked out, shaking the boy in his arms. “Come on, wake up.” He pressed a palm to Lance's forehead, wincing as he noted that it was already warming up, his skin paling in color.

Whatever this poison was, it must've been working fast.

Without sparing another second, Keith lifted Lance's limp form up off the ground and raced up the hill. He couldn't go as fast as he would like to while carrying the other, but he still made it to the infirmary in record time.

He dropped Lance onto the first bed he reached and shouted, even if Apollo campers that were tending to the sick had already rushed over. “HELP! He needs help, right now!”

“What's wrong with him?” The counselor of the Apollo cabin was soon by Keith's side, eyes searching Lance. Several other campers raced out the doors as soon as they saw the state he was in, presumably to get additional help.

Keith lifted up Lance's shirt, horrified to see that the green pigment was spreading rapidly across his torso. “A... a snake monster bit him, I think it's poisoned!”

“'Snake monster' is pretty vague,” another demigod was saying. “We need to figure out exactly what kind of poison it is, or we won't be able to get the antidote.”

“It's working too fast,” Keith replied impatiently. “Can't you just use healing magic?”

“Poisons have specific antidotes. This isn't like a cut or broken bone that we already know how to fix,” the counselor shot back. “And I've never seen anything like _this_ before.”

A girl burst into the room, wearing an oversized Camp Half-Blood T-shirt that went down past her pajama shorts. Her short, dark hair was still messed up from sleep.

“I came as fast as I could,” Shay breathed, rushing to Lance's side. The second she saw him, her face fell. “Oh no... I didn't realize it was Lance... Hunk will be so upset.”

Shay was the counselor of the Demeter cabin, with kind golden brown eyes, dark skin, a pixie cut, and signature hoop earrings she wore everywhere. It was no secret that she and Hunk were very close; the entire camp wished they would just get together already. In fact, Keith guessed the shirt she was wearing really belonged to him.

“Shay, thank goodness.” An Apollo camper gestured at Lance's side. “Do you know any herbal remedies for this sort of poison?”

Shay paled. “I've never... I have no idea what kind of poison this is,” she whispered, looking even more scared as the green tinge started to spread even faster.

“There has to be something you can do,” Keith insisted. “Get Matt over here. If anyone would know, he would.”

“Matt's on the quest with Shiro,” Shay said miserably. “They left last week, remember?”

“Someone else from the Athena cabin, then!” Keith looked from camper to camper, but no one seemed to know what to do. “Pidge and Lance are friends, get her!”

“If none of us know, then Pidge won't either,” the Apollo counselor told him.

“You don't know that!” Keith was nearly yelling now, but he couldn't find it in himself to care. “Just... just... you have to save him! Ambrosia, nectar, or... do _something_!”

“Coran keeps all the ambrosia and nectar in the big house! He's done that ever since a certain _somebody_ took too much after getting hurt in training,” the counselor reminded him, jerking a thumb at Lance. “Someone went to go get him, but we'll just have to wait—”

“We don't have  _time_ to wait!” Keith protested.

“How did this even happen?” Shay asked, her hand brushing the bite mark. Lance flinched away from the touch, groaning in pain, and she drew her hand back as if burned.

“He... Lance was trying to leave camp. He thinks the satyr who found him made a mistake,” Keith said softly. “I was trying to convince him to come back when the... the monster... oh, no. This is all my fault.”

“Don't blame yourself, Keith. If he was trying to leave—”

“One demigod is bad enough, but two? My presence is probably what made it so hard for the monsters to ignore him,” Keith realized. “And if I'd just been fast enough... then Lance wouldn't be dying.”

The others in the room weren't sure what to say to him, but suddenly Coran was bursting through the door, with Iverson right behind him.

“What happened?” Coran demanded, looking with panic from Lance's limp body to the boy standing above him. “Keith?”

Keith cast his gaze to the floor. As much trouble as it would get Lance into later, not telling the truth wouldn't be good for anyone. “He wanted to go back home. I saw him leave, so I followed him. We were attacked by this giant snake that burst out of the ground... he pushed me out of the way.”

“Well,” Iverson yawned, as if the whole ordeal was considerably boring. “If he was trying to leave, we don't owe him anything. Why waste the food and drink of the gods on someone who clearly doesn't want to be here?”

“I owe him my _life,_ ” Keith insisted. “If not for him, it'd be me dying instead!”

“Iverson,” Coran spoke, voice dangerous. “Healing an injured camper is never a waste.”

“He needs ambrosia and nectar,  _soon_ ,” Shay wrung her hands. It was an anxious gesture Keith had seen Hunk do countless times. “It's poison, and we don't know the antidote.”

Coran went forward immediately. As a centaur, who had taken control of the camp along with Iverson, he knew a considerable amount about poisons. Now, however, he had bent the Mist around him to conceal his horse half in a fake wheelchair.

“He hasn't even been  _claimed_ yet,” Iverson continued. “How long has it been? He's probably just the child of some minor god, not worth wasting our time over. If he wants to leave so badly, I say why not throw him out onto the streets?”

Coran, who'd been ignoring Iverson in favor of examining Lance, gasped. Everyone's attention swiveled to him. “If I'm correct... this wound was... that's odd. Who would have sent a pit serpent to attack him? Unless... impossible! I thought  _Python_ when he arrived was because I assumed he was a son of Apollo... but now... I wonder if—”

“Coran,” Keith's voice was tight. “If you could stop mumbling to yourself, hurry up and heal Lance already? What's taking so long?!”

Coran sighed, and stepped away from Lance. “I'm afraid... pit serpent venom is very, very strong, and it acts extremely quickly. We can give him ambrosia or nectar to see if that'll help, but if the poison's been spreading for this long... the amount needed to eradicate it might be more than his body can handle.”

“To _see_ if... are you saying that Lance is just going to die?!” Keith demanded, taking a step forward.

“There's... there's really nothing else we can do?” Shay asked softly. She had begun lifting a glass of water to Lance's lips, but her hands were shaking so badly that a considerable amount sloshed over the sides and landed on him. She winced, tilting his head back so he could properly drink it.

Coran stared down at Lance sadly. “The magic of the gods would, perhaps, be able to intervene... but then, without a proper offering—”

“You're just going to let him die?!” Keith was nearly shouting now. “You have to be able to do  _something_ ! He's... he hasn't even been claimed yet, like Iverson said! We don't know... he's only been here for...”

Keith trailed off as his breathing grew short, unable to keep from blaming himself. If he hadn't been out there following Lance, then his chances of survival would've been much better in the first place. And then Lance had to go and save Keith's life, when he thought the Cuban boy hated him all this time. It just didn't make any sense.  _ Lance  _ didn't make any sense, not to Keith, even if he did want to understand him better.

Oh gods, who was going to tell Lance's  _ family _ ?

“Keith, I'm sorry, but realistically it doesn't look like there's much—”

“I don't understand what everyone's getting so worked up about,” Iverson drawled. “This incompetent is a waste of our time. He's weak. Didn't want to be here anyway.”

“You're supposed to  _ PROTECT US _ !” Keith cried in their faces. “But you've never been good at it! IT'S YOUR FAULT THAT THIS IS HAPPENING TO HIM!”

“If you told us the story correctly, my boy,” Iverson said. “Then I believe the only person at fault here is you.”

Keith clenched his fists. “AT LEAST _I_ STILL WANT TO SAVE—”

He was abruptly cut off by a sharp cough, which put everyone's attention back on Lance. He rubbed his eyes, then squinted groggily up at all of them. “Keith, buddy, could you stop shouting? I've got a  _ killer  _ headache.” This horrible pun was followed up with a weary grin, but Keith was too relieved to be angry.

Instead, he choked out a laugh and practically tackled Lance in a hug.

“ _ Ow _ , um, okay... did you forget about the giant snake bite, because... uh...”

Keith showed no signs of moving.

“Jeez, how long was I out for?” Lance asked, chuckling nervously. “There's no need to look so sad, I'll always come back swinging.”

“This... this is impossible!” Coran declared in awe. “We haven't even given him ambrosia yet! All we gave him was... was...”

_ Water _ .

Keith stared at the empty glass sitting on the bedside table, only tearing his eyes away when the telltale bluish green light confirmed what they'd all realized.

_No_. It couldn't be him. Keith didn't want to believe it. And yet, there it was.

A shimmering, rotating trident hovered over Lance's head. He stared up at it in confusion, which quickly turned to horror.

“That's why she's so interested in him,” Coran whispered. “ _ That's _ why she keeps sending them after him! Why didn't I see it before?!”

If Keith wasn't so shocked about the new discovery, he might've thought to ask Coran what he was talking about.

“He's... but his aim is perfect!” the Apollo counselor protested. “He's never missed a single shot! He  _ has  _ to be a child of Apollo!”

“Are we sure he's not Aphrodite?” Shay asked, uncertainly. “I always thought he could have charmspeak, like Lotor...”

“I'm... I'm not a demigod,” Lance repeated his words from earlier, though he sounded much less sure now. “I'm... I promise, I'm not. You've got the wrong person, I'm not... I _can't_ be a hero.”

“Behold, Lance Sanchez-McClain,” Iverson said, still sounding bored. “Son of Poseidon.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THERE IT IS!!! Are you surprised? You'll find out everyone else's godly parents (now you know Shay, Matt, Pidge, and Lotor as well as Lance and Keith) soon enough, but I guess this could be considered a bit of a plot twist? Unless you're not surprised at all.
> 
> I personally think Poseidon is a better fit for Lance than Apollo or Aphrodite, but because of his archery and his flirting he does (as a cover- we all know our boy isn't that confident) people assume something else when he gets to camp. I mean, it's not like a child of the Big Three is a common occurrence, even in this AU. I hope you enjoyed!!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FLASHBACK CHAPTER!!!!! This is when Lance first arrives at camp!
> 
> I apologize for not posting lately, but hey! I was on vacation. Now back to our regular scheduled programming.

_2 Weeks Earlier_

 

Lance liked to think that it took a lot to surprise him. After all, being a child in a family as big as his meant that unexpected circumstances were to be expected. Not to mention the weird occurrences that seemed to  _ only  _ happen to him.

Like the time when three old ladies approached him at the store, slowly unraveling a ball of bright purple yarn between them. One of them brandished a very sharp pair of scissors. Lance's mom had ushered him out of the store pretty quickly, after that.

Or when he walked into his second grade class, only to notice that his teacher only had one eye, right in the center of his forehead. No one seemed to believe him, and all the other teachers scolded him for his wild imagination. But the next day there was a new teacher at the front, and everyone claimed that she'd been there from the start.

Regardless, Lance grew up accepting that sometimes things that he couldn't explain would just  _ happen.  _ He'd found the best way to deal with them was to ignore it.

Despite this, some things were unusual, even by Lance's standards.

For example, Lance didn't exactly consider running up a hill with a small boy who appeared to be a _goat_ from the waist down a typical, every-day activity. Add the gigantic snake pursuing them, and he could not-so-safely say that this was the single most strange and horrifying thing he had ever done.

This fact wouldn't hold up for long, of course. What he would begin to refer to as the Python Incident was only the start of the chain reaction of _what the fuck_ moments that was Lance Sanchez-McClain's life.

Thankfully, Lance had always been fast. He'd been on both the swimming and track teams since middle school, it was just the way he was built. Thin and lanky, long legs. Escaping the monstrous snake and reaching the top of the hill in time  _ should _ have been an easy task.

Klaizap, or 'goat-boy' as Lance had started to call him, was  _ not _ very quick. Running on short legs and hooves didn't bode well for uneven ground. To make matters worse, the angry 'satyr', as Klaizap  _ wanted _ to be called, kept shouting at Lance to stop looking back. In the third person.

“GO!” he shouted. “YOU'RE MORE IMPORTANT, JUST CROSS THE BARRIER! DON'T WORRY ABOUT KLAIZAP! HE CAN DEFEND HIMSELF!”

Then the snake swept it's tail, knocking Klaizap back down the hill. And Lance panicked. The monster still seemed to be focused on him, but if he made a break for the barrier it could turn on Klaizap within seconds, and he appeared to be out cold. If Lance could buy enough time for the satyr to wake up...

It was the least he could do, after being so rude to the poor guy. Not that Lance particularly  _ enjoyed _ getting dragged to New York against his will to go to some  _ camp,  _ but he wasn't about to let anyone get killed because of him. Besides, Lance didn't like the idea that he was more important than anyone else. It just didn't add up.

Trying to stand his ground against a massive snake was probably ill advised, especially since Lance possessed no weapons. But he wasn't just good at running, he also knew how to improvise.

And how to be a distraction.

“Hey, ugly!” Lance shouted, running back down the hill. He waved his arms, drawing the huge snake's attention back towards him.

Its shining red eyes fixed on Lance immediately, and he definitely did _not_ like the look it was giving him. The serpent was enormous, body easily as thick as a car, and it could stretch over the entire hill without bringing its tail out of the valley. Lance had hoped that the hugeness of the creature would hinder its speed, but no such luck.

The snake sped towards him quickly, mouth opening wide to reveal a set of glimmering fangs. Lance only dived out of the way just in time, and ended up rolling down the rest of the hill. Suddenly, he came to an abrupt stop, only to realize the snake had whipped its tail around behind him.

Before Lance could react to this new development, the snake was encircling him, lifting him up off the ground in the thick coils of its tail. He soon found himself staring directly into its eyes, and he gulped. Even if he _had_ had a weapon, he couldn't move his arms. Lance struggled and thrashed, but the monster continued to press around him, depriving him of oxygen. His lungs were on fire, and he struggled to find air to take in. In the distance, he swore he could see the ocean waves along the beach growing bigger, starting to rise up—

Suddenly, an arrow was whizzing past his head. It smacked what Lance later learned was called 'Python' on the snout, right between the eyes. The snake appeared surprised, but the arrow just bounced harmlessly off its thick skin. It opened its mouth wide, leering towards him. A glance at the sea told Lance he must've imagined it, as the water was calm once more.

Lance saw movement in his peripheral vision, and without thinking he reached out. His hand caught the object, and he looked to see that it was an arrow. Lance wondered how he knew that it would miss its target. He didn't have much time to think, however, as the snake was getting closer. He jammed the arrow into its mouth, the point piercing clean through the roof. The serpent screeched, and twisted in agony. In its surprise, it dropped him.

Lance landed hard on the ground, and felt arms picking him up off the floor. He glanced up to get a look at who was helping him.

The boy was bulky, and wearing pajama pants with a bright orange shirt that read 'Camp Half-Blood.' He had an orange headband tied around shaggy black hair, to match.

“Are you okay?” he asked quickly. “Who are you? I'm Hunk, but— how'd you even _get_ here?!”

“The name's Lance,” he replied, sticking out his hand, with none of his usual bravado. Lance tried for a smile, but it probably ended up as more of a grimace. “I'm fine, but you might want to check on the... satyr, was it? Klaizap?”

Hunk's eyes widened. “ _Klaizap_ brought you? But he's stationed in Cuba I... there aren't supposed to be demigods that far from New York! Well, _I_ was, I guess but we _moved_ and—”

“Demi... what?”

Hunk shook his head. “For now, let's try and get you to camp alive. We've got to get rid of this snake. Pidge?”

A small girl with short, fluffy auburn hair came came running at them. Her orange shirt was so big on her that it nearly covered her jean shorts. She nodded quickly at Hunk, before unsheathing a bronze dagger from her belt. “I'll climb onto his back, you distract him,” she declared. “The archers should stop shooting, the arrows won't do much with this exterior. They'll just get in the way.”

Hunk grinned, as if this were a perfectly logical plan. “It's been ages since we got put on the same team for capture the flag. Forgot how much I liked working with you.”

Pidge snorted, and started towards the snake.

“Woah, wait a second,” Lance pushed himself to stand up fully. “How are you going to climb onto that _thing's_ back?! You'll be killed!”

Pidge just smiled back at him, before tapping a bracelet around her left wrist. Abruptly, she vanished into thin air.

“Magic items,” Hunk sighed. “Wish I had one as cool as Pidge's.” With these words, he stuck a hand into a pocket of the tool belt he wore, and pulled out an axe that was easily the _size_ of Pidge.

“Right,” Lance said weakly. “Because _that's_ not cool at all.”

Hunk charged at the snake, hacking away at the scales. While not doing as much damage expected of a weapon of that magnitude, it did have more effect than the arrows and drew an oddly colored blood from the creature. Lance could do nothing but stand and watch dumbly as Hunk swung the axe.

He belatedly realized that the snake wasn't moving, only to see that this was because it watched Hunk intently, poised to strike. And Hunk was so focused on trying to make larger cuts into the serpent that he hadn't noticed.

Lance dove forward, somehow managing to push Hunk out of the way, and the snake's snout plunged into the grass where he had been standing only moments before. He stared at Lance, brown eyes blown wide.

“You saved my life,” Hunk said softly, in awe.

“Returning a favor,” Lance replied, yanking Hunk backwards as the snake launched towards them again. “I don't like owing people. I don't suppose you've got any other huge weapons in that belt of yours?”

“Mostly just tools,” Hunk admitted, as he reached a hand into one of the pockets before tossing Lance a hammer. “But it's better than nothing.”

Lance nodded in agreement and looked back up, only to do a double take. Sitting on top of the snake's head was Pidge, a dagger in one hand and holding onto dear life with the other.

“How the _hell_ did she get up there?!” Lance shouted, still wondering how his mindset of 'nothing else can surprise me' was endlessly being proved wrong.

Hunk shrugged. “She's Pidge,” he said, as if this explained everything.

The girl in question shot a smirk in their direction, before plunging her bronze knife into the snake's head, undoubtedly piercing its brain. She leapt down to stand beside them triumphantly as the snake writhed in pain.

“Well, now that _that's_ taken care of, would anyone mind explaining to me—”

He was cut off by a loud hiss, and then the snake was heading straight for them, red eyes glowing dimly and appearing, if possible, even angrier.

“Oh, come on!” Hunk cried, throwing his hands up in exasperation, as if the sky could somehow fix their problem. Lance readied his hammer.

“Why is this thing so difficult to kill?!” Pidge demanded as she crouched closer to the ground. “Shouldn't it be a pile of yellow dust right about now?”

“It's Python,” a new voice said, and without warning the ground splintered beneath the snake, and swallowed it whole into the abyss.

All three of them turned to see who had spoken, only to find a tall guy with both hands outstretched and sweat dripping down his brow. Dark hair, muscles for days, and looking absolutely exhausted for some reason. Lance's eyes, however, were drawn to the shorter boy who stood beside him.

His jet black hair was too long, and falling into his face. His skin was ridiculously pale, and he was small in build. When he looked up, Lance saw that his eyes were a blue so deep it bordered on purple, and they blazed so intensely he had to look away. In one hand he carried a bronze sword and in the other a silver one, though the latter was slightly curved.

“Thanks, Shiro!” Hunk breathed out in relief.

“You don't mean that we were just fighting _the_ Python?” Pidge gaped, looking around as if someone was surely playing a practical joke on her. “Where did you _send_ it?”

The first boy, who Lance now figured was Shiro, nodded gravely. “That was Python. And now he's in the Underworld. My father can take care of him.”

“But what would Python be doing here?” asked the second, shorter boy. “There's got to be a reason.”

Shiro walked forward, until he was standing directly in front of Lance. “I'm guessing it's got something to do with him.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOPE YOU ENJOYED!!!
> 
> I'll tell you, I'm having so much fun doing the magical items, thinking of all this business. Crazy. To clarify, Pidge had a bracelet that makes her invisible and Hunk has a tool belt that is NOT like Leo's. Hunk's belt can store anything he puts in it forever, and not weigh anything. So he's got tons of tools in there that he just carries with him at all times. But if he didn't put it in, he won't have it. The axe is the biggest thing he has, cause that's his weapon.
> 
> After this is another flashback chapter, and then we'll get into more serious plot biz. I'm sure excited, so I hope you're excited.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ANOTHER FLASHBACK CHAPTER!!!! Takes place the day after the last one. Don't worry, after this we're going to get back to the present. And this one's Keith-centric (but still features most of our characters, don't worry)!

_2 weeks earlier (continued, a day after the last chapter)_

 

“But why do you think Python came for _him_ , Shiro?” Keith asked, for the seventh time that morning. “He hasn't even been claimed yet, he's just like any other normal demigod!”

“Well, we didn't exactly find him at the average time. He's fifteen already, going to be sixteen next month, according to him. Normally, demigods don't last in the mortal world above _twelve_. He must've attracted the attention of monsters before Klaizap found him.”

Keith wrinkled his nose. “Klaizap was sent to Cuba so he could have a chance to be less... aggressive. He wasn't supposed to actually _find_ somebody!”

“This means that there could be other demigods on islands nearby the states, and Coran agrees that satyrs should start going further out,” Shiro said absently. “We know Hunk was born in Samoa, but he wasn't found by his keeper until he moved to the states. I just thought he was a rare case. Guess the gods got around more than we thought, huh?”

“That doesn't explain why _Python,_ of all monsters, would be following him! When was the last time that overgrown snake went after a demigod?! The entire camp's talking about it! There's something unusual about this guy, Shiro, we should be careful.”

Shiro sighed. “Keith, you always say that we should get more hours to train, so how about we actually practice sword-fighting? No more questions; I don't know any more than you.”

Keith rolled his eyes. “Fine.” He took his cigarette lighter out of his pocket and clicked it, instantly transforming it into the celestial bronze sword that was its true form. Shiro readied his own, and Keith was debating whether or not he would also need his silver blade when a cheerful voice interrupted them.

“Hey Shiro, Keith! Mind if we join you guys for training?” Hunk asked, waving. Trailing behind him was Pidge, and the new kid. Lance, if Keith remembered correctly. “Lance needs to get situated with a weapon.” Right.

“Of course,” Shiro said before Keith could decline, lowering his weapon and stepping towards the display of sample ones. “A more proper weight match could be found in the armory, but for now use this.” He tossed Lance a sword, and the latter caught it with surprising ease. “I'm Shiro, from the Hades cabin.”

Lance hesitated before shaking his hand. “I'm Lance, but.. Hades like... the god of death?”

Shiro stifled a laugh. At least this kid was direct. “Exactly. I see you've already met Pidge and Hunk.”

Lance nodded. “Yeah, Pidge's cabin is Athena, goddess of wisdom, right? Not really surprising all things considered. And Hunk is Hepha... Hephe...”

“Hephaestus,” Hunk supplied helpfully. “God of the forge and metalworking.”

“Right. That,” Lance agreed, before turning to Keith and sticking out a hand. “And... you are?”

Keith's arms remained decidedly crossed, and he pretended to not to notice the hurt that crossed the taller boy's face. “Keith. Son of Ares, god of war.”

Lance scoffed, and muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like 'go figure.' Keith scowled.

“You're taking this surprisingly easily,” Shiro noted. “And catching onto all the mythology pretty quickly. That's good.”

“Well, with how odd my life gets sometimes, it almost makes sense. Not to mention that Coran spent ages explaining it all to me. Still, wish I knew _my_ cabin number,” Lance said wistfully. “The kids in the Hermes cabin are crazy, let me tell you! Rolo and Nyma kept trying to steal my stuff last night! I don't even have that much!”

“You won't be able to leave until you get claimed by your parent,” Keith said bluntly. “Now, are you going to train with us or not?”

Lance's bright smile seemed to flicker for a moment, but returned full force so shortly after that Keith decided he must've imagined it. “Of course,” he declared, tossing the new sword from hand to hand. “Who better to test out my skills on than you, huh Keith?”

Keith's frown deepened, and he decided that he would, in fact, be needing both of his swords for today.

In seconds Lance's sword was skittering across the floor, disarmed by one of Keith's while his other blade was leveled at Lance, who had somehow ended up on the ground. The Cuban boy had his arms slightly raised in surrender, eyes wide.

“Well, of _course_ he won,” Lance grumbled, after Hunk helped him up. “He has two swords after all, and magical ones at that! I bet I could win if I had two weapons that were bound to me by _magic_.”

“Oh, come on,” Keith reasoned. “I wasn't even using the magic! I can literally light this sword on fire, and this dagger can be thrown like a frisbee and always come back, plus grow longer and—”

“Not to mention you're the child of a war god,” Lance continued, ignoring him completely. “Clearly I'm not a child of Ares, or I'd be able to beat you at this!”

“Keith _is_ actually the camp's best swordsman, but not just because of his godly parentage. He and I have probably been here the longest out of anyone that's still around, both year round campers. And he's very dedicated to training,” Shiro pointed out.

Lance opened his mouth, then closed it again. “ _Who_ thought it'd be a good idea for me to go up against this guy?”

“You did.”

Lance sighed. “I was afraid you'd say that, Pidge.”

“You just need a little practice,” Hunk assured him, with a friendly smile. “But maybe we can try out some other styles of combat? The archery range isn't too far away.”

* * *

Keith was beginning to realize that this new guy was _full_ of surprises.

Hunk only had to tell him where the bows were in the armory, and Lance picked one up, weighing it in his hands. It was a lighter shade of wood, with a barely visible string that Hunk assured them would never break. The grip where he held it was a darker brown, and the quiver of arrows he chose all had blue feathers on the ends.

“These arrows are just normal celestial bronze,” Hunk told them, as he led the group towards the targets. “But I can always work on some more for you in the Hephaestus cabin, if you take a liking to this. Explosive arrows are the favorite of many Apollo campers.”

“This is much better than that sword,” Lance grinned, drawing back an arrow to aim at the first target. “I could _definitely_ get used to this.”

“Don't be too discouraged if you miss,” Shiro reminded him. “Archery is a skill that requires precision, and lots of practice. Keith's been here since he was ten, and he still hasn't perfected it.”

“That's because _I_ prefer to spend my time on more useful weapons,” he grumbled. “When fighting a monster up close, swords are much more practical.” Keith sent an arrow flying toward the nearest target, and it barely hit the edge.

“Tell that to the Huntresses of Artemis,” Pidge retorted. “Or the Apollo campers. Just because _you're_ hopeless with a bow doesn't mean everyone is.”

Lance snorted, and Keith shot him a glare. “Go on, then. I'd like to see you do any better.”

Lance's easy-going grin abruptly switched into an expression of concentration as he eyed the target. He drew the arrow back slowly, lining it up perfectly on the bow, and took in a long breath. Then, as he exhaled, he let loose the string in one rapid motion, and the arrow soared forward. Directly into the center of the target.

The others stared at it, not believing their eyes, and Lance whooped with joy, pumping a fist into the air. “I told you so!” he said happily, smiling at Keith again. “I'm a natural! Hunk, I'm going to need some of those explosive arrows.”

Hunk nodded, a grin slowly spreading across his face to match Lance's. “You got it, buddy.”

Pidge rolled her eyes. “Wow, I _wonder_ who his godly parent is. What an absolute _mystery_.”

Keith looked from the arrow, to Lance, to Pidge, then back to the arrow. “You think this means he's Apollo?”

“Isn't it obvious?” Pidge gestured at the target. “He said it himself, he's a natural, and children of Apollo have a gift for archery. I'm surprised he didn't get claimed after that, actually.”

Hunk tapped a finger to his chin, eying Lance thoughtfully. The other shifted under his gaze, clearly uncomfortable. “I don't know,” Hunk mused. “Appearance-wise, I thought maybe Aphrodite. And he's got that personality all her children have, you know. Maybe even charmspeak. That's still my theory.”

“Charmspeak is extremely rare, and the only demigod that's been known to have it in the last several _decades_ is Lotor! My money's on Apollo, all the way,” Pidge said firmly. Her eyes glinted mischievously. “Want to bet on it?”

Hunk shook her hand enthusiastically. “You're on, for five golden drachmas.” Pidge nodded in agreement.

“Oh, please,” Shiro sighed. “We don't have to make a _bet_ to settle this. Lance, which of your parents is the god?”

Lance stiffened, the happy expression faltering again. Keith narrowed his eyes.

“ _Both_ my parents are back home, in Cuba,” he said, fidgeting uncomfortably. “And all my siblings... I... are you sure I'm even supposed to be at this camp? I grew up knowing both of them, so I don't know how...”

“This is the _only_ place you're supposed to be,” Pidge told him, incredulous. “You wouldn't have even gotten past the barrier if you were mortal, and if you go back out there you'd probably be killed! I'm guessing one of your parents had a brief affair with a god or goddess, then—”

“Stop it, Pidge,” Keith interrupted, words surprising even him. Apparently he was the only one who noticed how unhappy the direction of the conversation was making Lance.

“There's... there's no use dwelling on it now,” Shiro decided, looking at Lance worriedly. “We'll find out which cabin you belong in when you get claimed. For now, would you two mind giving Lance a tour of the rest of camp? Keith and I are going to finish up training for today.”

Hunk nodded, and led Lance away by the arm. His eyes still looked a million miles away, but the smile was back. Keith watched the three of them go.

“You could try and be less rude to him,” Shiro muttered softly, causing Keith to whirl around.

“ _Me_?” Keith asked, floored. “What about _him_? He acts like he thinks _he's_ a god! And he's got to stop freaking out whenever someone speculates about who his parent might be! Somebody's gotta try and get it through his thick skull that he belongs here.”

Shiro raised an eyebrow. “Then why'd you stop Pidge?”

He frowned, staring at the grass. Lance had just looked so... upset. Maybe _he_ should try explaining it to Lance instead...? But Keith said nothing.

“He seems nice,” Shiro continued. “And you could do well to make some more friends, Keith. Matt and I are going on that quest in a week, and I don't want you to be by yourself. Besides, if something happens to me—”

“Don't say that,” Keith cut him off, voice stern. “Nothing's going to happen to you.”

“He's new here Keith, so he probably doesn't have a lot of friends, either. I just want you to try and talk to him, see if you get along,” Shiro pressed. “It really won't be so bad.”

“Were you talking to the same guy I was just now?”

“ _Keith_.”

He crossed his arms. “Fine, I'll... I'll talk to him. But I'm not going to enjoy it.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AGES! It's about time I gave you a masterpost of them. Including the characters that haven't been introduced in here yet. Since this is an AU where the go to Camp Half-Blood, they're all decently younger. (This fic takes place in June, and all the birthdays are the same as they are in the show, just for added reference).
> 
> Lance- 15  
> Keith- 15  
> Pidge- 13  
> Hunk- 16  
> Shiro- 17  
> Allura- 16  
> Matt- 17  
> Lotor- 17  
> Shay- 14  
> Nyma- 15 (she was mentioned, and I love her so I'm listing her even if she's not that relevant)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last day of my summer? You better believe I'm updating this fic again to celebrate/mourn.
> 
> We finally stop with the flashbacks this time. Hope you enjoy!

_Back to Present_

 

Lance thought that maybe when he found out who his godly parent was, everything would make sense. Though he still couldn't completely shake the feeling that the whole thing was a mistake, he'd fallen into a kind of routine at Camp Half-Blood the past two weeks, even making several friends. Part of the reason that he tried to leave had been because everyone couldn't understand why his claiming was taking so long. He felt maybe he'd be welcome if he just returned home.

But now Lance regretted all that. Being marked a child of the sea god had made his whole situation ten times worse. He now had to live in the Poseidon cabin all by himself, after just getting close to a few Hermes campers! Lance wasn't used to living alone, not by a long shot. If anything, the overcrowded cabin of the messenger god of thieves and travelers had been more of a comfort than a nuisance.

Not only that, but both the Apollo and Aphrodite kids were shunning him. The entire camp had speculated over which one he'd be, though most favored the former opinion. Now that is was revealed Lance belonged to neither group, they all were annoyed for some reason. Despite it not being _Lance's_ fault, the Apollo campers didn't understand why a child of Poseidon would have such good aim. The children of Aphrodite were, apparently, confused as to why he was so good looking. And the entire camp was uneasy. Another child of the Big Three? It wasn't exactly your average claiming, especially since those three gods weren't _technically_ supposed to be having kids at all. Everyone had pretty much avoided him the past few days. But there was one thing that bothered Lance the most.

Keith's expression after he saw the trident above Lance's head... he could only describe it as horror. He'd been hugging Lance seconds before, but then Iverson announced him as a son of Poseidon, and Keith launched himself away so quickly that Lance nearly reached after him. He'd sprinted from the room. Was the idea that Lance was a child of Poseidon really that terrible? Maybe he was just a disappointment compared to what they expected of such a powerful demigod. After all, he was useless compared to Shiro. But it still stung, even if Lance didn't want to admit it.

He sighed, burying his head under his pillow with the full intent to skip lunch as he had breakfast. Meals sitting by himself at the Poseidon table, with everyone staring at him, were miserable. Unfortunately, fate seemed to have other plans.

The door to his cabin burst open, revealing Hunk and Pidge, both with arms full of... something covered in a blanket.

Lance groaned. “If you're hiding more snakes under there, I'll pass. I've had enough of those to last me a life time.”

“You skipped breakfast,” Hunk smiled apologetically, moving the cloth to reveal a tray with sandwich, a bowl of chips, and a glass of water. “So I figured I'd bring you something to eat.”

Lance took it, and eyed it suspiciously. “You guys about to poison me or something?”

Hunk's smile fell. “Why would we do that? You've _already_ been poisoned, I just thought food might cheer you up.”

Lance had to shove the laugh down. “Well, it's sure not my mom's cooking,” he mused. “But I do like grilled cheese. For future reference, I prefer Coke to water.”

Pidge scoffed. “What, no thank you? Hunk nearly got mauled by harpies for getting you that!”

Lance raised one unimpressed eyebrow. “He told me last week that he sneaks out after curfew to steal food from the kitchens all the time, with the help of some Hermes kids. I bet Hunk's an expert at avoiding harpies by now. But yes, thank you. What delicious treat have you brought for me, Pidge? Hopefully ice cream.”

“Not quite,” Pidge said, removing the blanket to reveal an armful of technology. Among the devices she had were a laptop, what appeared to be two different handheld gaming devices, several cracked or broken cell phones, and a small radio. “I brought something better.”

“Woah,” Lance breathed, before drawing his gaze up to meet Pidge's again. “I thought technology was banned here! Doesn't it alert monsters to your location?”

“Not if you know how to use it _right_ ,” Pidge rolled her eyes. “I've never been detected using this, not once. The only person that knows is Hunk, because he helps me repair it. I might even be able to snag a small TV soon! That Nyma really knows her way around.”

“Okay, so you're a nerd,” Lance concluded. “Why bring all of this stuff in here, though? Isn't going inside another god's cabin strictly forbidden?”

Hunk looked around uncomfortably and took a step closer to the door, but Pidge simply waved a hand to dismiss Lance's comment. “Please, that rule is _literal_ ages old. Besides, I need a place to hide my stash. Coran would flip if he knew, and you're the only one in here, so... Hunk and I are going to keep our tech in here. Hiding it in the Hephaestus cabin was getting really old. You okay with us dropping by from time to time?”

Lance nodded, trying to mask how his heart swelled. Pidge and Hunk were still speaking to him. They wanted to leave their stuff in his cabin, and come back regularly. “I don't suppose you've got my phone in that pile of yours? I've... it's been a while since I spoke to my family.”

Pidge winced. “Sorry, Keith wrecked it pretty bad. And none of the ones I have even work, not fully anyway. But I'll let you know if I get them repaired.”

Lance sighed. “That's okay, I kinda figured.” He stared at the ground, avoiding their eyes.

Hunk's eyebrows furrowed in concern. “Lance? You okay?”

“It's nothing” Lance muttered. “Just... you two don't hate me, do you? For being a child of Poseidon? I know you want to put your stuff in here, and you can, but...” he trailed off, glancing up at them.

“Of course we don't hate you,” Hunk said softly. “We're here, aren't we? Why would you even think that?”

Lance hugged his knees close to his chest. “It just seems like the entire camp is... angry at me? For who my dad is? It's like they expected me to be someone completely different, and then I ended up being a huge let-down. Now they're all disappointed.”

“Lance, you're not a let down,” Pidge said firmly. “Sure, you being claimed as a son of Poseidon was surprising. I mean, Hades, _I_ didn't see it coming, even if now I feel stupid for not realizing it. They're not disappointed, just shocked. Another child from one of the Big Three is a lot to wrap your head around, and it's only been a few days!”

“It's true most people thought you'd be Apollo or Aphrodite,” Hunk added. “But that doesn't matter, because that's _not_ who you are. You're Lance, you're our friend, and we're here for you.”

Lance's eyes widened. “Friend?”

“Well, obviously,” Pidge adjusted her glasses. “I'd say saving each other's lives is a pretty good foundation to build a friendship on, don't you think? Regardless of who your dad is.”

Lance wanted to be happy at her words, but in the back of his mind he couldn't help but think of someone else. Someone he'd been so determined to hate, but then he'd gone and saved him. And that someone saved his life, too, and Lance had wondered for a second there if _they_ could be friends. Then, just like so many things in Lance's life as of late, it all fell apart.

“What about Keith?” he asked suddenly, causing Hunk to jump.

“What about him?” Pidge replied, voice uncertain.

“We... he hasn't talked to me at all since it happened. I thought we were getting past this stupid rivalry for a minute, and then... I guess he hates me now.”

“Keith doesn't hate you,” Hunk reasoned. “He knows it's not your fault. But he doesn't like surprises, or that's what I've gathered. I barely know the guy, Shiro's the only one he's really close with, but they were on the run together before even coming to camp. Maybe he's just worried because you're not what he expected.”

“I'm still just me,” Lance said bitterly. “Still can't do anything right. I don't know what exactly there is to be _scared_ about.”

“You're kidding, right?” Pidge's voice was incredulous. “You've got to be the most powerful demigod here, excepting Shiro.”

“I don't _feel_ powerful,” Lance confessed, burying his face in his knees. “I'm still just the same me, except now I'm miles away from home, and I'm all by myself. And nothing makes any sense.”

“Some of what you said is true,” Pidge admitted. “But you're wrong about one thing.”

“And what's that?”

“You're not alone,” Hunk said, matter-of-factly. “You have us! And we're here for you, if you need us. And I'm sure the rest of the camp will support you too, soon enough.”

“They'll realize there's nothing scary about you,” Pidge agreed. “Even if your arrival caused a bit of a _splash_.”

Hunk groaned, but Lance felt his smile return at that.

“And... what about Keith?”

“Keith'll come around,” Hunk assured him. “This is all going to blow over, you'll see. Who cares about who your dad is? You're still Lance, and you're still a demigod, just like the rest of us. We can show you that this _is_ where you belong.”

Lance felt his eyes brimming with tears in spite of himself. “Thanks, you guys.”

 


	6. Chapter 6

Back in Cuba, a habit of Lance's when he was lost in thought was to stand on the beach, just far enough into the ocean that the water reached his ankles and submerged his bare feet, and to look at the sky. Regardless of time of day, he could watch the endless shades of blue and purple shift and swirl around the clouds or stars. It always made him feel better.

At Camp-Half Blood, he discovered staring at the sky while sitting on the docks at the canoe lake had almost the same effect. Lance's feet dangled into the water, and he kicked them slowly from time to time to relax as he gazed at the drifting clouds. He'd been doing this for a while, when he suddenly felt a sharp tug on his right foot.

Lance cried out in surprise and scrambled to hold onto the dock, just managing to keep his balance. When he looked down into the depths of the lake, two girls about his age stared back at him from the bottom. One's hair was pulled into two very long, dark ponytails that glinted almost blue under the surface, and eyes reflecting the shade of the water. The other's hair was loose, and a bright red. Her eyes glowed a more purple shade. Lance was, once again, thrown for a loop. How could they _breathe_?

“Those are Naiads,” a voice behind him spoke, and Lance turned so quickly he nearly toppled off the dock a second time. Keith's arm shot out to grab him out of nowhere, keeping him steady. Lance felt his cheeks heat up. “Plaxum and Flurona, water-spirits. Careful, or they'll pull you in. All the naiads are very kind, flirtatious, even. But... they tend to forget that demigods can't breathe underwater.”

Lance tore his arm away, and glared into the lake. “I didn't need your help.”

“You're welcome,” Keith muttered under his breath.

Lance folded his arms across his chest. “ _I_ could probably breathe underwater. I'm a child of Poseidon, remember?”

He made sure to watch the other's reaction closely, and therefore didn't miss Keith's wince, or the way he took a step back.

“Oh, wait, I forgot,” Lance continued sarcastically. “You're pissed at me because of that, for some reason. Here I was, thinking I might _actually_ be able to talk to you, and then you just stop speaking to _me_ altogether? It figures, right?”

Keith flinched. “Lance—”

“Are you going to try and tell me that's not exactly what happened?” Lance demanded, trying to ignore how broken his voice sounded. “One second you were hugging me, and I was thinking 'holy shit he actually cares that I'm alive', and the next you were running from the room! Well, who needs you anyway? The entire camp practically hates me now, after all. Guess next time I almost die I better just hurry up and do it, huh?”

Lance stopped for breath, not fully aware of what was coming out of his mouth. He didn't understand _why_ he wanted Keith to not hate him so bad. Or maybe he _did_ want to make Keith hate him, just for something that was actually under his control.

Whatever the reason, the last sentence Lance said seemed to resonate with Keith, as the shorter boy's eyes widened, and then he was rushing to get back to his cabin again.

_Great job, Lance,_ he thought to himself, before starting to go after him. He opened his mouth to call out to Keith, only to find his path suddenly blocked by another half-blood, one he hadn't seen before.

This guy had long hair reaching his waist, shockingly white in color, but it somehow suited him. His eyes were golden brown, and his skin was ridiculously smooth with a strange hue to it, appearing almost purple. Lance figured the guy must be a fan of makeup. And, though Lance considered himself tall, the other demigod was taller.

“So you're Lance,” he spoke, holding out a hand. “It's good that we're finally meeting. I've heard so much about you.”

“Hopefully all good things,” Lance shook his hand, with a hesitant smile. “And... you are?”

“Lotor,” he said, surveying Lance with scrutinizing eyes. “I must say, I'm glad you're not a child of Aphrodite, even if you _do_ look the part. I was rooting for Apollo, but one of the Big Three? Even better.” Lance thought he remembered hearing the name somewhere before, maybe when he first arrived at camp. But he wasn't sure.

“Why... why didn't you want me to be a child of Aphrodite?”

Lotor grinned at him, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. Something about it set Lance on edge. “Because _I'm_ a son of Aphrodite, silly!”

“So... you don't hate me because I'm Poseidon's kid?” Lance asked tentatively.

Lotor barked out a laugh. “Hate you? Of course not! You're much more interesting to me _now_. Much more useful, too.”

“Um... _useful_?”

“Of course,” Lotor replied. “So much more powerful, you know. Not that you'd have any control over it yet. But you will, or so I've heard.”

Lance took a step backwards, growing increasingly uncomfortable. “Uh... would you mind explaining to me what you're talking about?

“Oh, nothing important,” Lotor waved a hand at him. “I just had something to ask you. A small favor, it's not much really.”

“Favor?” Lance echoed, uncertain. “What's that?”

Lotor suddenly made direct eye-contact with Lance, and he couldn't seem to pull his gaze away. He took a step closer, and Lance's feet felt rooted to the spot.

“I'm going to need you to forget what I tell you, Lance,” Lotor said, his voice suddenly sweet as honey. The sentence raised all sorts of alarms in Lance's head, but for some reason his brain just felt foggy, and he nodded. Lotor smiled, but it was cold and calculating this time.“You'll remember when I need you to, okay? Now listen closely.”

* * *

When Lance came back to his senses, the first thing he heard was someone shouting, but he couldn't seem to hear any of the words. The second thing he noticed when his eyes focused was that he definitely wasn't standing on the docks anymore, in fact, he appeared to be sitting at the bottom of the lake. How the hell had he gotten there?

Upon realizing this, Lance tensed up and was about to kick to the surface for air when he realized that... he could breathe. Perfectly fine, just as well as he could on land. In fact, his clothes weren't even _wet._ Water surrounded him, but it was as if a thin layer of air encased his body.

He looked around, and spotted the two naiads staring at him curiously. Before he could move, one of them spoke.

“Are you really a son of the sea god?” asked the one with her hair in ponytails.

“Yes?” Lance hadn't meant for it to come out as a question, but then again, he hadn't expected to be able to properly communicate underwater at all. Lance sighed.

The two exchanged looks, and the redhead swam towards him. “If this is true, Luxia will certainly want to speak with you. Perhaps we can aid you on your quest.”

“Quest?” Lance shook his head. “I think you have me mistaken for someone else, I'm not going on any quests.”

The water-spirits simply giggled, still looking at him fondly as if he were a kitten that still hand't explored the entirety of the house. Before he could ask what was so funny, he felt an arm pulling him upwards.

As his head broke the surface, Lance met Keith's eyes in confusion. The other boy dragged him back onto the docks, and kneeled down beside Lance.

“Are you okay?” Keith demanded, hands hovering over him though not making contact. “You were under for so long I... how are you not soaked?”

Lance glanced down at his still perfectly dry clothes, and shrugged. “Another power that comes with Poseidon, I guess. I could actually _breathe_ underwater, too. Never knew I could do that before.”

Keith sighed, and sat back on his heels. “I was... when you didn't come up right away I thought Lotor had told you to drown yourself.”

“Lotor?” Lance asked, bewildered. The other demigod stood to the side, glaring at something far off in the distance. “What's... what was that favor again?”

Lotor's eyes glinted, but he said nothing. Keith's own expression turned hard.

“What _favor_?”

“Oh, relax, Keith,” Lotor brushed him off, turning to walk away. “It's just a little fun. He'll remember what he has to do when he has to do it.”

Keith stood suddenly, and stormed over to him, grabbing his collar. “This _isn't_ funny, not at all. You've got to stop using charmspeak to prank new campers! It stopped being funny when that child of Demeter nearly got herself killed, because of _you!_ ”

Lotor scoffed, turning away, and Keith watched him go with a clenched jaw.

“Um,” Lance began intelligently. “Mind telling me what's going on? What the hell is _charmspeak_?”

Keith turned towards Lance again, expression softening as he crouched back down beside him. “It's a power only very few children of Aphrodite possess, the power to make people do their bidding, just by speaking to them. Lotor likes asking new campers to do favors for him, usually pretty dangerous ones, because he finds it entertaining. You... don't remember what happened?”

“One second Lotor was asking me for a favor, and the next I was sitting at the bottom of the lake, with water-ladies telling me that they could help me on my 'quest', whatever that means,” Lance grumbled, running a hand through his hair. “And when I said I wasn't going on any quests, they just laughed at me!”

Keith averted his eyes at that, looking... sad? Lance had to be seeing things. “I glanced back and noticed Lotor talking to you, but I didn't hear what he said. So I started to go over, and then... I saw him push you into the lake.”

“Wonderful,” Lance mumbled, sarcasm dripping from his voice. “Guess we won't know what this favor is until I'm about to do it, huh?”

Keith nodded. “I'm... sorry about that.”

Lance couldn't help it, he stared at Keith for a moment, before shaking his head. “You don't have to apologize, it's not your fault, just... promise me, whenever I try to do something stupid, you'll stop me?” Lance risked a grin in his direction. “You've done a pretty great job so far.”

Keith's eyes widened, but he nodded again. “Yeah, of course. You do a lot of stupid things, after all.”

“Hey!” Lance protested, but then he realized Keith was laughing, and couldn't fight the grin off his face. “I guess that's fair enough.”

Keith opened his mouth to speak again, but was cut off by a shout, coming from the hill that was the entrance to the camp, and the surge of campers running towards the barrier.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know if charmspeak can work like that in the PJO universe, but it does here. Plot convenience, leave me alone, Lance will remember and have to listen under certain circumstances.
> 
> Also, this is where the plot really starts to pick up, so stay tuned, get hyped, all that jazz. Hope you enjoyed (I know you guys were all excited for Lotor).


	7. Chapter 7

Keith ran for the hill before Lance could even register what had happened. He scrambled to follow, calling after him, but he was going at a speed even Lance found extreme. He finally caught up at the top of Half-Blood Hill, where Keith had drawn up short to stare down into the valley.

“Jeez, Keith, slow down,” Lance gasped for breath, looking up to see what had captivated everyone's attention. “You nearly—” he broke off, all words forgotten as his eyes took in the scene.

Shiro was sitting on the ground, clutching his arm... or where his arm _used_ to be. It had been chopped off above the elbow, and he must've been in a lot of pain if the blood was anything to go by. There were tears streaked down his face, and Lance couldn't shake the feeling that this was all wrong. That maybe, if he blinked, Shiro would be the kind, easy-going camper that Lance had met two weeks ago.

Lance was beginning to realize that a lot of things in his life were going irreparably _wrong_.

Coran was already by Shiro's side, and he held up a hand towards Keith, who'd already started forward. Lance, before he knew what he was doing, put a hand on Keith's shoulder.

He only looked Lance's way for a split second, but it was enough for him to notice that... Keith was crying.

“Shiro,” Coran asked, voice patient and kind. “What happened?”

Shiro opened his mouth, but it was someone else that spoke. A quiet voice, right beside Lance, only audible because of the silence.

“Matt?” Pidge whispered, then repeated herself, louder. “MATT?!” Her searching eyes found Shiro, and he shook his head slightly. She took a staggering step forwards, before immediately collapsing onto her knees with a choked sob. Lance felt a sharp pang of sympathy, remembering the time his older sister had been in a car accident. He knew Pidge and Matt not only shared their godly parent, Athena, but also had the same mortal father, Sam Holt.

Shiro tore his gaze away from her to look back up at Coran. “We got the crystal,” he said softly, voice broken. “The crystal from Hecate, to strengthen the camp barriers. For our quest. We were on our way back.” He held out his hand to the centaur, revealing a small, shimmering blue crystal that pulsed with an even brighter light.

“On the way back,” he continued. “We ran into this... this giant. He was so much more powerful than any of the ones I've fought before. We were fighting, and he got my sword, so I decided it'd just be best if I shadow-traveled us back to camp with the crystal. I was holding onto Matt's hand but... just before I made the jump...” Shiro stared down at where his arm used to be, and squeezed his eyes shut. Lance knew he was close friends with Matt, he'd seen them together around camp often. He was probably just as broken up about it as Pidge was.

The silence seemed it would stretch forever, and then—

“You have to go back.” It was Pidge, still slumped by Lance's feet. “You _have_ to. If you go back now, then you can get him, and bring him home, Shiro. Please, bring Matt home.”

Before Shiro could answer, Coran spoke. “Pidge, Shiro can't possibly withstand another shadow-travel jump in this condition, especially one so long. What he needs now is rest. He'll be in no shape to help your brother, even if he could make it there. Besides, the giants have their own means of travel. They could've taken your brother elsewhere by now.”

Lance expected Pidge to protest more, but she just clenched her jaw, knowing full well that Coran was right.

“We need another quest,” she said firmly, after a moment. “To find and save my brother, and as soon as possible. I'm going to bring him back, no matter what. This giant, whoever he is, is going to be nothing more than a pile of dust if I have anything to say about this.” Pidge's hand was on the hilt of her sheathed dagger, as if she expected someone to disagree with her.

“I'm going, too,” Shiro said. “It was my quest that put Matt in danger, and it's my fault he was taken. We're bringing Matt back here safely, Pidge. That's a promise.”

Coran looked alarmed, but Pidge nodded, a small smile beginning to form in determination. “We'll need a third person. Quests are supposed to be three people.”

Shiro cast his eyes to the ground, no doubt feeling guilty again. He and Matt were the only ones on the last quest; Shiro was the one who'd persuaded him that they'd be okay. Maybe he attributed what had happened to the misfortune that often befell demigods who went with more or less than three people.

But no one spoke. Lance felt Keith tense beside him, and he recalled what he'd been told about how Keith was on the run from monsters before he found camp, at a very young age. All things considered, it made sense that he wouldn't want to leave. This had been his home for ages now, right?

According to Hunk, Shiro was something of a legend, notorious for multiple quests. But, despite Keith arriving at camp at the same time, he'd never been on one.

He saw Hunk in the crowd, too, holding the hand of a girl he had come to know as Shay. They exchanged worried looks.

Lance knew he had somewhat of a reputation for bad ideas, but it had begun to form in his mind regardless. He would be an outsider at home, not a real part of the family if they knew his true parentage. And here, at a camp of people who were supposedly just like him, Lance was an outcast. The child of a god who wasn't even _supposed_ to be having children. The useless, weak boy who didn't turn out to be quite as weak as they had thought. Which ended up being almost worse, because now he was dangerous.

Maybe, if he could bring Matt back, they'd finally stop feeling uneasy around him. Maybe he could have a place to belong, for once in his life.

Maybe he could prove to them, and himself, that Lance McClain could be a hero.

He looked at the still tear-stained faces of Shiro and Pidge. He saw the way Hunk took a hesitant step forward, reluctant but willing to if no one else would, to help a friend. He noticed Keith steeling himself, and opening his mouth, despite his obvious fear at leaving the camp.

Lance didn't have to think any longer.

“I'll do it.”

Hunk's eyes grew impossibly wide, and he was shaking his head immediately, starting towards Lance. Keith whirled around to stare at Lance, looking absolutely horrified.

But Shiro tilted his head to the side, regarding Lance with a mixture of curiosity and respect. And Pidge gazed up at him, eyes full of wonder, gratitude, and... something deeper.

That made everything worth it.

“I'll do it,” he repeated. “I'll be your third person. I'll go on the quest, and I'll help save Matt. What better way to hone my skills than near-death experiences, right?”

“Are you _crazy_?!” Keith nearly shouted, causing Lance to jump. “You can't go on this quest!”

“Oh, so you act like I don't exist for days and then suddenly you're worried about me?” Lance asked, poking Keith in the chest. He knew it wasn't fair, but after the lake Lance thought they'd been getting somewhere. Only for Keith to throw it back in his face. “Yeah, right! You don't get to tell me what to do!”

“You're new! Completely unexperienced with weapons, and using your powers. You can't go on a _quest_!”

“You're just jealous because I'm better than you at archery!”

“Is _archery_ going to save you when there's a monster right in your face?” Keith demanded. “You'll be killed! Besides, a demigod with your father will attract a lot of attention. You'd put all three of you in more danger!”

“So _that's_ what this is about,” Lance said bitterly. “I don't understand! Shiro's a child of one of the Big Three, too! What's so different between me and him?”

“Shiro can shadow-travel, and avoid monsters better because of who _his_ father is!” Keith was clearly growing angry. “And he can actually use a sword, since he's been training, unlike you! You're _useless_!”

Lance drew away from Keith quickly, trying to compose his features into something that resembled okay. He was trying to think of something to say that wouldn't betray how he felt, but luckily Shiro spoke before he could.

“Woah, what?” he looked from Keith to Lance in surprise. “Big Three?”

“He's a child of Poseidon, Shiro,” Keith said flatly, crossing his arms. “And he's not going on that quest.”

Lance considered protesting again, but he noticed a look pass between Keith and Shiro. Suddenly, the older boy looked as if he completely understood, and Lance wanted to scream from confusion. What was so absolutely _terrible_ about him that everyone else seemed to know?

“You all need some rest,” Coran said softly. “I'm sure it's been a long day. Why don't you head back to your cabins?” The campers grudgingly began to go back down into the valley, and Coran walked towards the statue that guarded the borders, healing crystal in hand.

Hunk jogged to catch up with Lance. “Are you _sure_ you want to go on that quest, man?”

Lance winced, watching Keith's retreating form as he stormed off to the Ares cabin. “Please don't try to stop me. I need to prove to myself, to _everyone_ , that I can do this. I want to be able to help.”

Hunk sighed, but gave him a small smile. “I'll support you no matter what, Lance. Just... come back alive, okay?”

“Just because you asked so nicely,” Lance smirked. “I'll consider it.” Hunk snorted, but their conversation was interrupted by a bright blue glow. They turned to look at where Coran stood by the statue, which was enveloped in a light emanating from the crystal he seemed to have put in the base.

“I don't believe it,” the man whispered, and they watched as the girl frozen mid-twirl in stone transformed from muted grey to full of color and life, from frozen still to swaying on hr feet. “You've... I didn't think the crystal would... she's been here for ten years!”

The girl fell forward, and Lance was there to catch her, albeit clumsily. Her hair was an unbelievable snow white that cascaded down her back, her skin dark and smooth. When she opened her eyes to stare up at him, they were a beautiful, piercing light blue. Lance felt a blush spread over his cheeks. “Where...?”

“She's awake,” Coran spoke reverently, as if in a dream. “After all these years, I thought I hadn't saved her.”

“Her?” Lance asked, staring at the girl in his arms. “Who exactly is—?”

“I am Allura, daughter of Zeus.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I always end on cliffhangers, but I hope you enjoyed!
> 
> Finally got to introduce Allura (I told you I'd do nods about PJO and VLD plot stuff, didn't I? Here's the first one)!


	8. Chapter 8

“Daughter of... Zeus?” Lance muttered intelligently, as Allura blinked up at him. She was probably the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen, and he felt his face heat up as she stared at him.

This didn't last long, though, because she leaped out of his arms and pulled a _whip,_ of all things, out of nowhere. “Who are you? Where am I?!” She held her weapon high, and he scrambled backwards to avoid getting hit, lifting his hands in the air.

“Woah, easy there, princess! Don't ask me, _I_ don't know!”

She narrowed her eyes. “ _Do not_ call me princess. And I believe I asked you a question?”

Hunk was rushing forward, closely followed by Pidge, Keith and Shiro. “That's Lance. I'm Hunk, and you're at Camp Half-Blood. Maybe ease up on the threatening? I'd really prefer it if you didn't kill him.”

She lowered the whip, keeping her eyes on Lance as she wrapped it around her arm. It looked like an electric blue sleeve, with how seamlessly she wore it. She looked around, for apparently the first time. “How... I vaguely remember getting here but... I thought I...” she trailed off, eyes landing on Coran. “ _You_! You were here, before! How?”

Coran sighed, looking around at all of them. “Ten years ago, I was in charge of this camp, just as I've always been. A few demigods were coming here, without a keeper, led by Allura. Her father Zeus preserved her in stone, and the powerful magic that she possessed as a demigod created the camp's magical barrier, to keep monsters out. After so many years it was weakening, so I thought the crystal... I thought it would help with that. I never imagined it could... bring her back. The other demigods who were with her... didn't make it.”

Allura looked between him and the others. “Ten years? The friends I was coming here with... they're all... just gone?” At the awkward silence she was met with, her eyes hardened. “The giants that was chasing us... I'll destroy them.”

“Giants?” Pidge asked, taking a hesitant step forward. “A giant took my brother, maybe they'd be in the same place? We could work together.”

Allura's eyes surveyed all of them with thinly veiled suspicion. “And who are all of you?”

“Pidge, daughter of Athena. And Lance, who you were just threatening to kill, is a son of Poseidon,” Pidge said, then pointed towards Hunk. “He's a son of Hephaestus.” Allura's eyes lingered on Lance for a second longer than the other two.

“I'm Shiro, son of Hades, and this is Keith, from the Ares cabin,” Shiro shook her hand. “If you can help us on our quest to save Matt, I'm sure we can also help you find the giant that... hurt your friends.”

Allura nodded. “Good. If there's a quest, then I insist on going. I must return to the fight immediately.”

Lance felt something inside him shatter. Of course he wouldn't be allowed to go, he was being stupid just thinking it. Pidge, Allura, and Shiro would leave camp, and Lance would be left to sulk in his lonely cabin. He stared at the grass, trying to keep his face blank of any emotion.

“But... Lance already offered to go on the quest with you two,” Hunk mumbled, and all heads turned to him. Lance wanted the earth to swallow him whole, like what Shiro had done to Python.

“It's fine,” Lance said quickly. “Allura has a better reason to go, anyway.”

Coran shook his head. “I wasn't sure at first, that the time was now. After so many years... but no, Lance. All these things happening right after your arrival... it has to be a sign. I believe this quest is fated to be led by you. Allura and Shiro should get some much-needed rest, but... I think it's time you saw the Oracle.”

“The... the Oracle?”

Keith was already shaking his head vehemently. “No. Coran, please, you _know_ what will happen. It's not time, not yet!”

Coran ignored him, taking hold of one of Lance's arms. “Let's get you to the Big House, young man. You need to have a chat with Haggar.”

“The boy may stay here, Coran,” a raspy voice spoke, and Lance turned to see an old woman in a hooded cloak making her way over to him. All he could see of her shadowed face was two golden eyes that glowed intensely. “And you are wrong. The boy is, in fact, fated to lead this quest, but he will not be doing so alone. Not yet. That's for _another_ prophecy.”

“Not leading the quest alone?” Pidge echoed.

Haggar surged forward with unbelievable speed, grabbing Lance's left arm and Shiro's remaining right, pulling them both forward. “Two tasks to complete, and therefore two must go. A brother to find, a blessing to receive,” she laughed softly, eying Lance with a scrutinizing gaze. “You're not the one I would've picked. But we shall see where your journey goes from here.”

Lance just blinked back at her, unsure of what to say. Behind Haggar, Keith was looking from Lance to Shiro with panic.

Haggar opened her mouth, then, and a purple smoke seemed to fill the air. Shapes formed out of it, making next to no sense as it swirled around in time with her words.

“ _Two quests will go and later form one_

_Three to search for wisdom's lost son_

_And three to another realm for a gift_

_Where seven spark the balances' shift_

_Only to return with ruined success_

_To a traitor who desires what the gods posses.”_

The demigods stared around at each other for a moment, but Pidge was already pacing in thought. “So technically this is two tasks, but we go at the same time. We'll meet up in this 'other realm,' which I can only imagine is the Underworld, right? So there's something going on there, probably. Shiro, I assume you'd be leading the second part then, so.. Lance is leading the search for Matt?” She looked up at Haggar as if to check her work, but the Oracle only smiled back.

Shiro sighed. “A blessing from my father, probably due to my current state. I guess I'm not exactly fated to help find Matt, after all.” He looked up at Lance. “Just... promise you'll get him home safe?”

Lance nodded, then turned to Pidge. “You'll come with me, of course, won't you?” he asked her. “This is your brother, after all. I... want you to be one of the people I go with.”

Pidge grinned. “We'll need three.”

Lance's eyes snagged on Keith, but only for a moment. His eyes looked purple in the light, as if Lance was staring directly into the night sky. A part of him wanted to ask, but he dismissed that thought quickly. Keith could barely speak to him. He knew who he should really bring.

“Hunk,” Lance said, turning. “If you want to join us, I could really use your help. I think the three of us make a good team, right?”

Hunk only hesitated for a second, before wrapping an arm around Lance. “You know we do. I'll go, of course I will.”

“Allura, if you want a quest, you have a place on mine,” Shiro said, and she nodded. Lance was amazed to see a child of Hades getting along with one of Zeus. But then again,  _he_ was the odd one out. “And Keith,” he continued. “I'd love to have your help, if you're willing to give it.”

Keith's eyes flickered over to Lance, but he didn't notice. The idea of leaving camp to go on a quest... something Keith had wanted all his life, but was always too afraid to do. But he would follow Shiro into certain death, no questions asked, so of course he nodded.

Supplies, Lance wasn't altogether shocked to discover, were something taken very seriously. Lance and Shiro both received backpacks that included pouches of golden drachmas, ambrosia, nectar, some basic first aid supplies, and a considerable amount of modern money. Each demigod individually packed their own clothes, toothbrushes, sleeping bags, and what they hoped would be plenty of food.

What remained of Shiro's left arm was all bandaged up tight, and he had a new celestial bronze sword sheathed in his belt, one he claimed weighed perfectly fine, and would be able to fight with. Lance didn't doubt that he'd probably be much better than Lance at sword-fighting, even with one hand. Thank the gods Shiro was ambidextrous. He also wore a shield with a pattern of five lions on it slung across his back, reminding Lance of Captain America.

Allura had changed into much more practical clothing, still with her whip wrapped around her arm. Her long, white hair was tied up into an elegant bun.

Keith had his silver knife tucked in his belt, with his cigarette lighter that could become a sword no doubt in his pocket.

Pidge had her bronze dagger with her, as she did at all times, and the invisibility-inducing charm bracelet on her left wrist, though it wasn't activated then. Her face was set with a determination Lance had yet to see on her before.

Hunk had his tool belt, probably full of a lot more than just the axe. From what Lance understood, he'd stored  _tons_ of stuff in there. Since Hunk's tool belt could store whatever he put in it with no added weight, and Hunk could get the item back as soon as he wanted it, he was holding most of Pidge and Lance's supplies, too. At this point, he wouldn't be surprised if the other boy pulled out a pick-up truck to drive them to Matt.

Lance  _was_ surprised at how much he looked like one of them. With a quiver of blue-feathered arrows across his back, and a beautiful wooden bow in his hand... he looked as ready to take on a war as the others, and it both scared and excited him. He looked like a hero, and as he stared at the other five around him, he sort of felt like one, too.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The quest (technically two quests at once so we can have stuff with all six of our team) is finally starting! I hope you guys are excited for the adventure ahead!


	9. Chapter 9

“Are you sure you can track Matt with that thing?” Lance asked skeptically, gesturing to the small device in Pidge's hands. “It kinda looks like a normal handheld gaming device.”

Pidge rolled her eyes. “You ever wonder how monsters can find demigods in the first place?” Lance shook his head, and she sighed. “We give off a magical frequency, based on how much power we possess, that can be detected by their sense of smell. Monsters can also typically tell who a half-blood's godly parent is based entirely on the scent they have, and how strong it is. This is how satyrs find demigods and bring us to camp, too.”

“It's pretty genius, actually,” Hunk piped up. “Since we don't have the strong sense of smell that they do, Pidge is using her repurposed to tech to scan for it, pinpointing Matt's relative location by only looking for that of a child of Athena.”

“Which is how I know we're going the right way,” Pidge concluded as she continued to lead them down the street. “Children of Athena don't have as strong signatures as, say, children of the Big Three, _but_ all demigods grow more powerful with age, and Matt is seventeen. So this has to be him. If we can catch a bus, we should be able to get to his location fairly quickly.”

Hunk wrung his hands. “I knew a two person quest was a bad idea! Quests are supposed to be three people, but with two older, really powerful demigods? Why didn't anyone see this coming? Why didn't the Oracle see it coming?!”

Pidge grit her teeth. “Shiro told me the prophecy called for just two people. He also said it warned him that he'd lose something. He just didn't think the _something_ would be the person he brought with him.” She squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them and kept walking. “None of us could've predicted exactly what would happen, maybe not even Haggar. We just have to keep moving forward and find him, before it's too late. So would you two pick up the pace?”

“But... didn't he get captured by some giant?” Lance wondered. “How are we gonna handle _that?_ What's the plan?”

“The plan is we rescue my brother, by any means necessary,” Pidge said coldly. Lance was about to reply, but then she slapped a hand over his mouth and pointed. “Also, we should probably try not to die before we get to him.” Across the street and coming quickly toward them was a crowd of large black dogs, all with horrifyingly sharp teeth and piercing red eyes.

The cars that had once been speeding past were all gone, as if the people had somehow known not to come this way. It was nothing short of eerie, seeing a part of New York City completely void of life and movement.

Maybe that was the work of the Mist Shiro had told him about. Apparently, Coran might teach him how to manipulate it to use on mortals at some point. This thought crossing Lance's mind triggered another one; _when did I start not including myself in 'mortals'?_

He pulled out his bow when he realized the others had already readied their weapons, standing their ground as the creatures charged.

“Hellhounds!” Hunk yelled to them. “Probably straight from the Underworld! Whoever sent them has connections!”

Pidge growled, a noise to rival that of the monsters themselves. “Nice going, Lance!”

He turned to her in confusion. “ _Me_?! What did I do?”

“Your stupid godly parent is the one attracting all this attention! Or are you going to tell me that Hades would've sent his deadly pets after just _anyone's_ kid?” She slashed her dagger, dispelling the nearest hellhound into a pile of yellow dust.

“We don't know for sure Hades sent them,” Hunk pointed out, swinging his own axe, taking out two of the creatures at once.

“Who else would it have been?” Pidge demanded. Another hellhound tackled her to the ground, and she grappled with it for a moment before shoving her knife in its gut, all the way up to the hilt. The monster disintegrated, and she moved onto the next one. “How in Zeus' name are we supposed to find Matt if we run into this many monsters? Why would Coran have chosen him to be the one to lead this quest? Keith was right, he attracts too much danger!”

“Pidge,” Hunk warned, casting a nervous look Lance's way.

“I'm serious, Hunk! Look at him! He can't even fight yet! And Coran expects us to believe he might be 'the chosen one'? Yeah, right!”

“ _Pidge_!” Hunk said again. “Calm down!”

“We're never going to find Matt with him in charge.” Tears were welling up in the small girl's eyes. “In fact, we're all going to die here, because there are too many of them.”

The words stung. Deep down, Lance knew she was just scared, for her brother, for herself, and for them maybe. But he also had thought that these two were the only ones who believed in him. Apparently, even that wasn't true. Again, because of who his father was, he found himself an outcast.

Lance fired the arrows at the hellhounds from a distance, constantly retreating. Pidge was right. He was a coward, and he couldn't even properly fight close up. He had no business being on this quest. How could he prove himself, when he'd just be proving that Keith was right all along? Lance _was_ useless.

But as he looked into his quiver to check how many arrows he had left, a spark of an idea entered into his brain. He couldn't retrieve the blue-feathered arrows until the crowd of beasts left, and he'd run out before they were all dead. But, as promised, Hunk had fixed up all kinds of cool arrows for him.

The arrows with blue feathers were just that, arrows. Sharp, sleek, and sure. They were built for aerodynamics, made to hit a specific target, and undoubtedly Lance's favorite to use. But that wasn't all. Hunk had designed four additional trick arrows to accompany the dozen blue ones he had in his quiver, making a total of sixteen of them that he had with him now.

The arrow with green feathers had a rope attached to the end. If he shot it to the other side of a chasm he could walk across, or swing to the other side. A useful tool he had yet to use.

The black-feathered arrow trailed smoke after it, effectively blinding any enemies for a hasty get away, if they needed it.

The yellow arrow was a tranquilizer, made for foes that weren't monsters. Not everything they'd face could be easily turned into dust, Coran had told them so. Lance couldn't understand why he'd need to knock out a human or other demigod, but it was good to have, he supposed.

And the red arrow... exploded. Essentially, once it his its target, it instantly became a bomb.

His eyes briefly snagged on the black arrow, before swiveling over to the red one. And he had an idea. A reckless idea, and maybe the smoke _could_ work but... if he could just get the others to safety and fire the red arrow....

Lance grabbed both Hunk and Pidge, and sprinted for the nearest building. While it did give them the creeps, he was glad everyone had left. At least he knew that nobody would be hurt by his plan. He shoved the doors opened, and pushed them inside. He made a move to close the doors behind them, but Pidge grabbed his arm.

“What're you _doing_?!” she shrieked, already trying to push past him. “We'll be trapped!”

The hellhounds were already coming towards them. Lance ducked through the door, and slammed it behind him. “I need you guys to stay in here,” he said. “When I go out, close the doors behind me as fast as you can. Make sure none of them get inside.”

“Are you _running away_?” Pidge was enraged. “You can't possibly think that you're going to outrun them, Lance! You'll be killed, and we won't be much better off!”

Lance stared at the ground, and ran a hand through his hair. “I know we've only known each other for two weeks, and I understand why you don't think I can do this, but I have a plan. It's probably crazy, and definitely stupid, but if we keep fighting out there then we'll all die. And I might be weak, I might not be a hero in any sense of the word, but I am also _not_ a coward, and I'm _not_ letting either of you die. Not because of me, not on this quest, not ever!” He met their gaze now, face set determination. “So, I'm asking you to trust me on this. Give me two minutes. And... you should probably cover your ears.”

Hunk's eyes widened with understanding. “Wait, _Lance_ —”

But he'd already wrenched the doors open again, just enough to squeeze through. Lance shut them as soon as he'd gotten outside, and was face to face with the crowd of hellhounds, all with their teeth bared.

Lance had the nerve to smile.

“These things are dogs, right?” he whispered to himself, grabbing the red-feathered arrow. “Time to play fetch. _HEY_!” He waved his arms frantically, and all of their eyes narrowed at him. There was a collective growl, and one jumped forward, landing just a few feet in front of him.

Lance gulped. The monsters were eying him like he was their next meal, so he figured he'd better act fast.

He waved the solitary arrow above his head, watched their eyes follow it. Lance lined it up on the string, pulled back his bow, and aimed over the heads of the crowd of hellhounds, as high as he dared to shoot. Hopefully, this would take it far enough away.

And Lance let go.

The arrow sailed through the air, and just as he'd hoped the entire crowd of beasts followed it. The creatures were already surrounding it when it hit the ground just outside the building across the street and a few down. The force of the blast was enough to knock Lance to the ground, winded, even with that distance.

When he looked back up, no hellhounds remained. Only smoke from the explosive arrow, and piles of dust. He smirked, pushing himself up onto his elbows.

Pidge was barreling out of the building in the next second, her eyes gleaming. “Lance... all those things you said... I'm sorry I... I don't think you're weak! I don't think you're useless, I just... I'm so scared we won't find Matt, and I'm worried, and I don't want either of you two to get hurt, and—”

“Pidge,” Lance offered her a small smile. “It's okay. I get it. I miss my family back home in Cuba like crazy. If my sister were in danger right now, I'd probably be just as upset. Just as on edge. You have nothing to be sorry for.”

“Yes I do!” she insisted. “I said all those terrible things to you, and you just saved both of our lives! It was... _you_ were amazing! How can you think you're not cut out to be a hero?! Lance, you're _already_ a hero.”

He sniffed, trying to keep his eyes dry. “Thanks, Pidge. That means... that means a lot. You know, you actually remind me of my sister a bit.”

Pidge grinned at that, wiping at her eyes behind the glasses. “Guess we'll just have to watch each other's backs until we see them again, huh?”

“Guess so.” He enveloped her in a hug that Hunk soon joined, and Pidge buried her face in Lance's shirt, allowing the tears to fall.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for this being later than usual, but this weekend I was pretty busy.
> 
> However, I have some bonus good news for you guys in the form of a shout out! Go check out @writingimagination on Tumblr, because they made some really cool art for this series, which is absolutely gorgeous and looks just how I imagined the characters would!
> 
> [Here's Lotor and Keith!](https://writingimagination.tumblr.com/post/165925219179/lotor-and-keith-once-again-from-the-amazing)
> 
> [And Hunk and Shay!](https://writingimagination.tumblr.com/post/165895575539/shay-and-hunk-from-potato-fan-girl-s-fanfic-the?is_highlighted_post=1)


	10. Chapter 10

Keith fidgeted nervously, unable to calm his nerves enough for sleep. If the sounds from the other sleeping bag were any indication, Shiro was in a fitful slumber of his own.

Allura was supposed to be keeping watch first, as they'd set up camp for the night in a forest clearing to provide some shelter. Shiro needed rest after making a decently sized shadow-travel jump, and they'd ended up in a forest. They needed to get to the Underworld, for the cryptic reasonings of the Oracle; a blessing. The entrance was all the way in California, and he couldn't just make one jump across the country. So, they were stopped for the night.

And yet, Keith couldn't bring himself to sleep. His mind was consumed with worry for Pidge, Hunk, and Lance. Had the three of them encountered any monsters? The day had been particularly trying on Keith's part; traveling with not one, but _two_ children of the Big Three attracted a lot of monsters. It was lucky Allura was so skilled with the Mist, or they would've ended up accidentally endangering lots of mortals.

But Lance was a child of Poseidon, as much as Keith hated to admit it. And so he'd probably be getting almost as much unwanted attention. It made him uneasy just to _think_ about Lance fighting monsters. Sure, he'd been training hard the past two weeks. And fine, he was incredibly skilled with his bow. But... seeing him collapse after the snake bite was not something he wanted to ever see again.

Keith figured he should count his blessings. When Coran started to bring Lance to Haggar, for a moment he'd thought...

He shook his head to clear it. There was no use dwelling on _that_ , and no use worrying about Lance, either. He kept finding that he had to tell himself not to get attached to Lance, not to think about that bright smile, the infectious laugh, the deep blue eyes.

Keith just wished it was working.

“Can't sleep?” Allura asked, throwing a soft smile over her shoulder. Keith sat up, wrapping his arms around his knees as he nodded. “Me neither. I... I just keep thinking about that night. What I could've done differently. If I could've saved them, I mean. Why would the gods choose to preserve me, and not them? I remember it like it was yesterday... but I've supposedly been frozen in stone for ten years.”

Keith mentally cursed himself. Here he was, worrying about some boy he barely new, when Allura was suffering with all the knowledge she'd gained only a little while prior. And now she was back in the field, not taking more than one night to rest at camp. He knew what it was like to be on the run from monsters, and that was years ago, before he first found Camp Half-Blood, when it was just him and Shiro.

If Shiro hadn't made it then... Keith didn't know if he would've been able to keep going.

“You're strong,” Keith said uncertainly. He knew he was stating the obvious, but Allura's face brightened a bit nonetheless. “And brave, much braver than I am. I don't know if I could have come, if I were in your shoes.”

Her smile flickered, and she stared at the ground. “I want justice. I want to do what is right. But I cannot pretend that I'm fearless. I'm scared. What will happen to a daughter of Zeus who ventures into the Underworld? When I was frozen... I was so close to the safe haven. Now that it's finally within my reach... I'm in danger once again.”

“Because you're still willing to fight,” Keith pointed out. “Not many people could go through what you have, and still have that determination. You should be proud of it.”

The smile returned. “You seem like you've been through an awful lot together, too,” she jerked her chin at Shiro. “And I'd say that you two are very brave. After all, I didn't contribute much today.”

“Are you kidding?!” Keith was sitting up fully now. “With that crazy lightning trick you do? That was awesome!”

Allura laughed. “Ah, but I don't work well with others. You and Shiro seem as if you've fought together many times. Even with... with his predicament, he still manages. That is true strength.”

“Well.. we've known each other forever,” Keith explained, tracing a line in the dirt with the toe of his shoe. “My mom died when I was really little, and my dad... well. He didn't help. I went from foster home to foster home for a while, until I'd finally had enough, and I ran away. I was young, stupid, probably would've gotten killed by a stray hellhound or something, but Shiro found me. He was heading to Camp Half-Blood himself, and he brought me along. He's saved my life more times than I can count.”

Allura glanced down at Shiro's quiet sleeping face, eyes fond. Whatever unhappy thoughts had been plaguing his mind seemed to have dispersed. “He looks rather peaceful while he's sleeping, doesn't he? No trace of the vicious, sword-wielding warrior from early today. Looking at him now, you could almost believe he's still a kid.”

Keith sighed. “We're all still kids, technically speaking. But we have to grow up a lot earlier, if any of us plan on surviving.”

And he tensed, realizing the antics of Lance that he regarded with an eye roll as childish weren't so at all. Lance behaved like a fifteen-year-old should. He cracked jokes that were terrible and made no sense, he used cheesy pick-up lines on anyone who would listen, and he complained about the extensive training.

He missed his family.

True, Keith tried to convince himself that Lance would be okay, since he knew the Cuban boy _was_ strong. But Lance still hung onto aspects of his past life, and if he couldn't get rid of that part of himself... it _might_ not, but it could destroy him. Keith had given up on being a kid years ago.

Deep down, however, Keith knew he didn't _want_ those parts of Lance to change. He didn't want Lance to have to stop being himself to survive. But it was the good demigods, the really _good_ ones like Lance, who didn't come back from quests. This was something Keith had learned over the years.

As much as it killed him to admit, as much as he wanted to erase the feeling, he knew he was already in too deep not to be attached to the idiot.

“Let's call Lance and the others,” he said suddenly, and Allura jumped. “I... I think we should check up on them, don't you? Make sure they're okay?”

She nodded, setting up the Iris Message and throwing a golden drachma in. Soon enough, Pidge's face took over the screen. She yelped, and scrambled backwards.

“Pidge, it's just me.”

“Oh! Keith! Hi, sorry, you scared me. You guys camped up for the night, too?” At their nod, she continued. “I'm taking first watch.”

Keith squinted at the background. “Are you... where are you guys right now?”

“On the roof of a building,” Pidge replied casually. “Kind of awesome, right? Not _all_ of us can shadow-travel, but we're getting pretty close to Matt anyway, at least according to my tracker. This was Lance's idea, so that monsters can't sneak up on us. Or... well, I guess the Kindly Ones could, since they have wings, but I don't think Lance knows about them yet, so—”

“ _Lance's_ idea?” Keith hadn't meant to sound incredulous, but it couldn't be helped.

Pidge nodded enthusiastically. “Oh, yeah. We fought a really big group of hellhounds earlier, and he saved both of our asses. Hunk and I thought we'd be able to get through the crowd, but Lance knew we'd be outnumbered, so he made us hide in this building, right? Lance shot an explosive arrow from outside, and they all ran towards it and just blew up! _Boom_! It was awesome!”

“Hellhounds!?” Keith demanded, leaning closer to the screen instinctively. “He blew them up? Are all of you okay? Is anyone hurt?”

“We're all fine. Well, Lance _nearly_ got hurt, and he would've if he'd been standing any closer to the blast, but he's completely good now. What about you guys?”

Keith didn't know whether to be angry that Lance would do something so reckless, or proud that he'd thought of something so brilliant. Did he even have the right to be either?

He settled for both.

“Shiro's tired from making the jump, and we had a few rough encounters, but we're all okay,” Allura informed her. “Glad to hear you're doing the same.”

Pidge frowned. “I... I was being really mean to Lance earlier, actually. And he just... he keeps acting like he's okay, but he's not that good of a liar. He gave this really long speech, and he doesn't think that he's cut out to be a hero, but... Keith, you read the Great Prophecy, right? When you were a kid? Everyone at camp says it's about a child of Poseidon. Is that true?”

Keith clenched his fists at his sides, and let out a slow breath before answering. “You know I can't tell you anything about that, Pidge. I was never supposed to read it. I wish I hadn't.”

The first time Keith ever saw Haggar, he'd spotted the parchment in her pocket, and was curious. Living on the run, he'd had to steal before, and it was too easy to resist. He'd pickpocketed it, read it, then given it back, but the words often still haunted him. He'd only confided to Shiro about what he read, though most people knew what he'd done. They asked him about it, but Keith didn't ever want to talk or think about it again. This was true now more than ever, because of Lance McClain. Because Coran thought that he was the Chosen One, the one that the prophecy spoke of. Because of what that would mean.

Pidge rolled her eyes. “Okay, yeah, but you can't even confirm one _teensy_ little detail? Maybe just nod if—”

She was interrupted by an abrupt yell, and Keith's blood ran cold. He knew that voice.

“Lance?!” Pidge went away from the screen, crouching beside where he assumed Lance was lying down. “ _Lance_! Can you hear me?”

“Let... let me go... please I... I _don't..._ I didn't... stop, let me go!” Keith wished he just could jump through the spray of the message to get to them. Lance sounded close to tears.

“What's wrong?” Keith demanded. “Are there monsters where you are? Do you need us?”

Pidge looked back towards them, panicking slightly “He's sleeping, I don't know why—”

“Is this his first demigod dream?” Allura interjected, and both Pidge and Keith visibly paled.

“Oh, no...” she breathed, then leaned down, shaking the taller boy. “Lance, you have to wake up! Wake _up_ , Lance!” Thankfully, he was much less of a heavy sleeper than Hunk.

He shot up, letting out another yell before his eyes opened, wide and brimming with unshed tears. He looked around, barely sparing Keith and Allura's hovering faces a second glance, until finally his eyes snagged on Pidge. He let loose a strangled sob. “P-Pidge...”

She put her hands on his shoulders, and in that moment Lance looked like the smaller one. “It was a nightmare,” Pidge told him, voice firm. “You were just dreaming. It's probably important to the quest, demigods' dreams usually are, but it wasn't real. You weren't actually there, and it can't hurt you. You're okay.”

Lance nodded, brushing the tears from his eyes. “Right. Of course. Just... just a stupid dream. B-but... it was about your brother. And they mentioned someone being 'chosen', but they realized someone was listening and the giant started strangling me and... I think I remember what they were saying. If it's important, I'll tell you.”

Pidge nodded, and waved at Keith and Allura. “We should go, and you guys should get some rest. Our time's nearly up, anyway. Good luck!”

“And to you!” Allura replied, and the message cut off before Keith could say anything to Lance.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter was late, as it went up on Monday. I'm trying to update every weekend, so I thought I'd post this one early!
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the Keith-focus chapter!


	11. Chapter 11

_Lance couldn't see a thing. The darkness stretched on forever, and no matter how many times he blinked, it refused to go away. He couldn't even look at his own body._

_He had no idea how he'd ended up... wherever he was stranded, but for some reason his feet were rooted to the spot. Lance was trying in vain to move his legs when voices reached him from the blackness._

_“My Lord, I have news you will be satisfied to hear,” someone began talking, and for some reason the voice was oddly familiar to Lance's ears. But he couldn't quite place it. “I believe I have crossed paths with the hero of the Great Prophecy.”_

_“This is most troubling,” a second voice spoke, much deeper than the first. “You know the prophecy as well as I. Why would you think this to be good news, if the time of the Chosen is already at hand? He poses a threat to us, and our mission.”_

_Chosen? Lance couldn't help the unease that settled under his skin. He definitely wasn't meant to be hearing this conversation. Who were they, and what were they talking about?_

_“I thought you might be satisfied to know I have already taken steps toward his demise, my Lord. If we can eradicate his unfortunate... appearance before the time comes to complete our task, then nothing will stand in our way.”_

_“Foolish child! You cannot change the path of the Fates. The Prophecy will come to pass, regardless of your efforts.”_

_“If we can delay it, however, and force another to take up the task, wouldn't that be preferred?” the first voice asked sweetly. “Another hero will be Chosen, giving us time to prepare for the fight. Kill him before he even knows his potential.”_

_“I like the way you think,” the deep voice mused. “This why you are valuable to me. Return now, and inform me of further developments. If the boy dies now, this mission may be a success.”_

_There was a pause. “Lord, what of that other demigod? The child of Athena? He was here the last time I came to report.”_

_“Ah. I had to exchange him for some... information.”_

_“With all do respect, allowing him out of our custody may have been a mistake. I'm not sure how much he knows, and if the others find him, our goal could be compromised.”_

_“Relax, you insolent boy. I trust the woman I gave him to very much. She has a reputation for being particularly vicious to children of Athena. Besides, I now know how to get a step further into achieving my... ah, our goal. She told me of a hero she once fought, entirely invincible except for one small point of weakness, on his heel. Close to the strength of a god.” Lance could practically hear the grin behind the deep voice's words._

_Another pause, before the first voice spoke again. “Medusa?! You've handed him over to Medusa?!” he asked, clearly incredulous. “I don't know if we should trust her, Lord. Making deals with that crazed hag is risky business.”_

_“She has what she wants,” the other voice dismissed. “Matt Holt has been properly taken care of. And now we know of the incredible properties that the River Styx has to... did you hear that?”_

_Lance slapped his hands over his mouth. He'd been unable to contain the gasp at hearing Pidge's brother's name. So he was with Medusa, wherever she was. Now he knew who they'd have to fight, and that all seven of them had to stop whatever the man with the deep voice_ — _probably the giant Shiro had spoken of, now that Lance thought about it_ —  _was planning. And to do that, they'd have to go to the River Styx._

_“I believe we have an eavesdropper, my Lord,” the familiar voice had lost all of its sweetness, and now spoke in barely a hiss. It was considerably less recognizable. “Perhaps a wayward demigod in the clutches of sleep. Shall I dispose of him?”_

_“No need,” a loud thud was heard, and the owner of the deeper voice seemed to be getting closer. Lance blindly stumbled back. “I'll get rid of him myself.”_

_A hand was around his throat suddenly, lifting his feet off the ground and strangling the air from his lungs. Lance couldn't even see his attacker but he struggled against the grip, kicking out his feet._

_“What do you know?” the deep voice asked, and as unsettling as it was before, it was much more horrifying up close, especially when he could feel just how enormous the figure speaking was._

_Lance shook his head quickly, still fighting to get free. He tried to force out words in between gasps for air. “Let... let me go... please I... I don't... I didn't... stop, let me go!”_

_The hand started shaking him violently then, and he was losing strength and oxygen_ very _quickly. It spoke again, but strangely, it was in a voice that definitely wasn't the same. If Lance thought about it, it almost sounded like..._

* * *

“Wake _up_ , Lance!”

He sat up with a jolt, eyes flitting over his surroundings and glossing over everything until they landed on the small girl beside him. Lance failed to contain the sob that bubbled up in his throat. “P-Pidge...”

She placed hands on his shoulders, grounding him. “It was a nightmare,” she said, her voice like an anchor. “You were just dreaming. It's probably important to the quest, demigod's dreams usually are, but it wasn't real. You weren't actually there, and it can't hurt you. You're okay.”

Lance nodded, wiping at his eyes to remove the tears before they fell. “Right. Of course. Just... just a stupid dream. B-but... it was about your brother. And they mentioned a 'Chosen One', but they realized someone was listening and the giant started strangling me, and... I think I remember what they were saying. If it's important, I'll tell you.”

Pidge set her jaw, nodding, then turned to face the misty screen before them. Lance looked over, and was too numb to be surprised by Keith and Allura's faces looking on with concern. “We should go, and you guys should get some rest. Our time's nearly up, anyway. Good luck!”

“And to you!” Allura replied, and they disappeared. Pidge immediately turned to Lance, eyes sympathetic, yet sure.

“Tell me everything.”

* * *

By the time he'd finished, Hunk had woke up and was letting Lance lean on him for support. Pidge's fists were clenched and shaking at her sides.

“So Matt's with Medusa.” She shook her head. “She's almost as bad as Arachne when it comes to tormenting Athena's kids, but we'll get him back. I don't care who this giant is— he's not getting away with using my brother as a bargaining chip. And after we have Matt, we're going to put a stop to what he's doing in the River Styx. I... think I know what that's about but... let's just say I hope I'm wrong.”

Before Lance could ask what _that_ meant, Hunk spoke up.

“You're sure you'd heard the other voice before?” he asked, brows drawn together in concern. Lance nodded.

Pidge sighed. “He probably has a spy at camp, or something. We'll take care of that when we get back. As horrible as demigod dreams are, I'm glad you had this one, Lance. Now we know what we're up against.”

He fidgeted nervously. “There's something else. The voice I remembered... he said something about having already taken actions to dispose of 'the Chosen.' Do you know who that could be? I think they're in danger. These two made it sound as if... whoever it is, they want them dead.”

Hunk and Pidge exchanged an uncomfortable look. “That's impossible,” Hunk said slowly. “There's no way they can do that, not before the Great Prophecy is read!”

“They mentioned that, too!” Lance rocketed to his feet. “The Great Prophecy! They know they can't change it, but they want to try and delay it, to complete their 'mission', whatever that may be. What _is_ this 'Great Prophecy, anyway? I keep hearing it.”

Pidge and Hunk were glancing at each other again. “No one knows for sure yet, but... I'm sure you'll know soon enough. Right now we have to focus on surviving this quest. I'm sure this so-called 'Chosen One' can take care of himself.” She shot Lance a fond smile at this, and he blinked.

“Okay?” He hadn't meant for it to be a question. “You two go on to sleep. I'll take the next watch. I, uh, don't think I'll be able to sleep much, after that.”

He was staring up at the stars, lost in thought, when a small voice piped up from the ground.

“You miss your family, right, Lance?”

His smile was sad as he looked back at Pidge. “All the time.”

“What would you tell your sister right now, if you knew she was looking for you?”

He sighed. “I'd tell her not to worry. I'm in some trouble, which wasn't really under my control, but I can handle it. I'm strong, and I can get through this. And if I ever... _when_ I see her again, I'd give her the biggest hug she's ever had, and tell her that I'm home. That I'm safe.” he looked back towards the sky, taking in the endless blackness, scattered with light. “We'll find him, Pidge. We have to. Your brother is going to be safe soon enough, and we can all go back to Camp Half-Blood. To our... home.”

He glanced back to see that she was already asleep, a soft smile on her face. As he looked at the two friends he'd made and now couldn't imagine living without, calling the camp home felt... right.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I watched all of season 4!!! No spoilers, but... let's just say my motivation for writing (which never really left since season three) is back full force.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An extra long, Keith-centric chapter to celebrate his birthday!!! This one's very important plot-wise, so I'm excited to see what you'll think of it. I hope you enjoy!

Keith stared at the building looming above them. They'd been able to travel to the Underworld entrance without much incident, but as a consequence Shiro wobbled slightly on his feet.

The doors to DOA Recording Studios were bigger than he'd originally thought, and he couldn't help but grimace at the slogan written above them. What would happen when three very much _alive_ demigods tried to enter the land of the dead?

He wasn't sure he wanted to find out.

“What are we even going to do once we're in there?” Keith asked, trying to mask his uncertainty. “Will Hades even allow us entry?”

Shiro sighed. “I've only been to the Underworld once before, to return my father's lost Helm of Darkness when we first got to camp.”

“Five years ago,” Keith noted, eying Shiro out of the corner of his eye. “You were only twelve.”

“It was a simple mission,” Shiro shrugged. “Besides, it beat running from monsters _before_ camp with a ten year old you.” Keith scowled. “Still, I don't remember all that much. My... _Hades_ wasn't exactly welcoming. I only got in because the guy who guards the entrance takes bribes.”

Allura looked between the two of them, curious, but apparently decided it was better not to ask. “Really?” she wondered, voice skeptical. “The ferryman of the River Styx takes bribes?”

Shiro nodded. “Good thing we've got drachmas.” With that said, he walked through the double doors.

Keith sighed, following him with Allura right behind. He'd never been to the Underworld before. Never even been on a _Quest_ before, and not for lack of trying. He spent all his time training, but Shiro was still granted nearly all the quests. He was the star of camp, and Keith was happy for him, really. But he wanted to put everything he'd learned to use.

It bothered Keith once again, why he couldn't just stand up and volunteer to go with Pidge from the start. Lance would've never had to step up, then. Maybe... maybe Coran wouldn't have started to think Lance might be the one who the prophecy...

Keith pushed the thought out of his head. He couldn't afford to think of more than one issue at a time. Even though Keith had been more _eager_ for a quest than perhaps anyone, when the opportunity to leave camp was finally upon him... he'd been scared. Scared of leaving the only place he'd ever been able to call home.

But that was the thing about Keith. He was _never_ scared. Of anything. He'd been pretty much fearless since he got to camp. He'd faced countless monsters outside the barrier, what did he have to be afraid of?

That is, usually.

Ever since Lance McClain showed up two weeks ago, Keith found himself terrified all over again. The reckless Cuban boy did something that rattled Keith's nerves every other day, it seemed, and he wouldn't be surprised if it was on purpose.

That, and the fact that Shiro had told him to make friends with Lance. Keith wasn't very good at meeting new people, but he figured he'd give it a shot. But...

Lance was a child of Poseidon. _The_ child of Poseidon. The one from the Great Prophecy. And Keith couldn't get attached to him, couldn't get involved, because he'd _read_ the Prophecy, and he knew... he _knew..._

He knew Lance would have to die before all this was over. 

It was right there, staring him in the face from the lines of verse that had been irrevocably ingrained into Keith's mind since the day he decided to steal that scroll from Haggar.

Keith couldn't afford to lose anyone else, and so he couldn't afford to get close. Better to just hate Lance.

And yet...

He couldn't. Keith felt as if he was falling, _fast_ , and even if he knew what waited for him at the end, nothing he did could stop it. He was unable to stop himself from falling for—

Keith shook his head to clear it. He focused on looking around the room, rather than dwelling on his thoughts. That wouldn't do him any good.

The lobby was packed. People were crowded and sitting on every available seat and surface, yet many were still forced to stand. The strangest thing about all these people were that each person was slightly translucent. Wayward souls, then, who hadn't been able to make their payment of entry yet. Shiro, Keith, and Allura had to shoulder their way through the crowd to get to the front desk.

The man who greeted them there wasn't what Keith expected the ferryman of the Underworld to look like at all. He'd been picturing dark, hooded robes, but this man wore an expensive Italian suit and sunglasses. His name tag read 'Charon.'

“Well now,” he leaned across the desk to look at the three of them closely, and sniffed the air around them. “What do we have here? You three aren't dead. What are a few godlings like yourselves doing here?”

Shiro stepped forward, pushing in front of Allura and Keith to look Charon in the eye. “We're here on a quest. We wish to enter into the Underworld to speak to Hades.”

Charon chuckled. “I'm sorry, but I'm not supposed to let any living souls down there.”

Shiro reached into his pocket, pulling out the pouch of golden drachmas. “We can pay for—”

“I have no interest in money,” Charon waved a dismissing hand, then narrowed his eyes at Shiro. “I remember you. You look different now, lost an _arm_ , but... I still know you. You haven't returned in a while, but you're him, aren't you? The boss' son?”

Shiro lifted his chin, giving a slight nod. “I wish to speak with my father.”

Charon sighed. “You can go on in, then. But the other two will have to...” he trailed off, eyes fixing on Allura this time. She fidgeted uncomfortably. “You're the daughter of Zeus. Allura? From all those years ago?”

She hesitated, but with a worried glance at the others, Allura nodded.

Charon let out a slow breath. “Hades will _definitely_ want to speak with you. You two may go in. The third waits here.”

“Why... why would Hades want to speak with me?”

“You cheated death,” Charon replied with a grin that didn't reach his eyes. “Zeus, your father, swooped in and saved you at the last minute. The boss didn't like that.”

Allura shuddered.

“What about me?” Keith demanded. “We're all on this quest together! You can't just keep me from going!”

“I can, and I will. Hades has no interest in a demigod of... _your_ background.”

Keith scowled. “And what's _that_ supposed to mean?”

“Keith,” Shiro placed a hand on his shoulder. “Just wait here in the lobby, okay? The two of us will be fine. Try and get some rest, I know you spent too much time on watch last night.”

Keith frowned, staring at his shoes. “Fine. I'll wait.” He watched angrily as Shiro and Allura were led into the elevator with Charon.

As much as he hated to admit it, though, Shiro was right. Keith hadn't gotten much sleep lately, and not just because he stayed up to keep watch. He walked towards a chair, and spirits instantly fled from the space when he arrived. Did _everyone_ have something against children of Ares?

Keith sighed, collapsing into the seat corner and leaning his head on the wall. As guilty as he felt about the others having to go down there without him, there was no reason he should waste the time to get some perfectly good rest.

* * *

_Keith found himself in a large courtyard, populated all over by stone statues. As he walked through the rows of them, he noticed a pattern. Why would someone make statues with such obviously horrified expressions on their faces?_

_“I can't believe it!” A familiar, excited voice was crying out. “We found him, he's— he's alive! Matt, Matt wake—”_

_“Shh, Pidge!” another voice hissed, and Keith knew this one, too. “We don't know when she'll be back!”_

_“Would you two hurry it up over there?” A third voice, and Keith was sure of it now. He was hearing Pidge, Hunk, and Lance on their quest. How did he get to the same place? He hurried over to where they were to find Lance holding his bow at the ready, while Pidge and Hunk fiddled with the lock on a cage behind him. Inside said cage was the unconscious form of Pidge's older brother, Matthew Holt._

_“It's not my fault! This lock is really complex, I think it might be enchanted. I'm going to need more time,” Pidge told them._

_“We don't have much more time!”_

_“Both of you, calm down,” Lance rolled his eyes, looking around at the courtyard again. “If necessary, I can just act as bait to distract her. She can't fight all of us at once.”_

_Pidge shot him a glare over her shoulder. “That sounds like a plan that'll get you, if not all of us, killed. Don't you remember what'll happen if we look her in the eye?”_

_“What are you guys doing here?” Keith asked, looking around at all of them. No one seemed to see him standing there._

_Keith sighed. He really_ hated _demigod dreams, sometimes._

_He glanced away, only to see a woman coming out of the building nearby. The building with a sign that read 'Aunty M's Garden Gnome Emporium.' Based on this, her veil, and the faint hissing Keith could hear from under it, he knew immediately who this was._

_“Guys,” he warned. “Lance, look out.”_

_But the three demigods were too busy bickering to notice._

_“Guys!” Keith repeated, beginning to grow anxious. But there was nothing he could do. He was just a spectator, witnessing the events as they occurred miles away._

_“Well, well,” Medusa spoke slowly, as if she had all the time in the world. “Three more half-bloods? It must be my lucky day.”_

_“CLOSE YOUR EYES!” Pidge shouted, and all three of them instantly did so._

_“All we want is Matt,” Lance aimed his bow blindly, pointing it nowhere near where Medusa stood. He didn't fire though, smart enough to know shooting blind was a bad idea. The other two didn't even have their weapons drawn. “If... if you let us leave with Matt, then we won't have to fight you.”_

_“I don't think you're in a position to be making deals here, son of Poseidon,” she laughed, the sound completely fake. “Why would I ever let such trophies go? Good thing keeping this one alive worked. Here I was, thinking a child of Athena was a stroke of fortune, but now I've got two. And you, of course. You're the one I truly wanted, Lance McClain. Did you enjoy the friends I sent you?”_

_Keith felt his heart drop, all the stories of Medusa rushing back into his head. How did she know Lance's name? Had she been watching him? And she knew he was a child of Poseidon... which wasn't good, considering she seemed to have an obsession with the sea god. Medusa also had a vendetta against Athena, the goddess who had turned her into a monster. So they were_ all _in danger._

_But it was what she said to Lance that concerned Keith most. Friends? What did she mean by..._

_The_ snakes _. Python, and the pit serpent. Someone had to have sent them... Coran was rambling about a 'she', and Keith had never thought much of it until..._

_This was very, very bad._

_“M-Me?” Lance asked, voice shaking. His eyes were still firmly closed, but Medusa removed her veil to stare him straight in the face, with an eerie grin. “What... what would you want with me?”_

_“You'll see,” she whispered. “If you just open your eyes.”_

* * *

 Keith jolted awake, and was running out the door almost immediately. He didn't even know where they were, but it didn't matter. He had to help. He could get back to Shiro and Allura later, but now he had to help Lance and the others. They were in serious trouble.

He raced around the side of the building, ready to run all the way back there if he had to. Maybe ask Coran to send a Pegasus? Keith had always been rather gifted at flying them. But as he walked into the shadow cast by the DOA Recording Studios building, something strange happened. His entire world melted into darkness, and then he felt like he was being blown forward with an inhumanly fast wind, like he was on a rollercoaster. When the feeling subsided and his vision refocused, he was standing in front of a completely different building. In fact, everything around him looked new.

A sudden wave of exhaustion hit Keith, and he collapsed against the wall, breathing hard. What... what had he just done?

 


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're officially past the half-way point of this work! Don't worry though, I've got a lot of plans for this AU, and there's definitely going to be more than one 'book' in this series.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter!!

“You can open your eyes now, guys,” Pidge told them, placing a hand on Lance's shoulder. “She went back inside. We need to figure out her plan so we can find out a way out.”

Lance hesitantly looked around. He and Pidge had been put in one cage in the courtyard, with Matt and Hunk inside the other.

“We could use our weapons to break out,” Hunk offered.

“My dagger won't do much against these bars,” Pidge said. “But see if you have something in that magic toolbelt of yours that can help us. And keep track of Matt, alright? He should be waking up soon, unless his injuries are more serious than we thought.”

“What does she even _want_ with us?” Lance wondered, running a hand through his hair. “Why is us wanting Matt back such a big deal?”

Pidge glanced at him. “You really don't know much about Greek Mythology, do you?”

Lance shook his head. “Never had a reason to learn it.”

She sighed. “Medusa was a girlfriend of Poseidon's. She used to be extremely beautiful, but Athena caught her with Poseidon in one of my mom's temples, which is really disrespectful, you know? So she cursed Medusa, with the whole snake-for-hair, turn-into-stone thing.”

Lance let out a low whistle. “Damn, your mom really doesn't mess around, does she? Guess now I know where you get it from.”

“Thanks,” Pidge smirked. “But we've got bigger problems. Because of that... Medusa doesn't really like children of Athena. She despises us, because of what Athena did to her.”

“We need to get out of here, then,” Lance said. “You and Matt could be in serious danger.”

Pidge grimaced. “Well, we're _all_ in serious danger, but there's something else, too. Because of her connection with your father, Medusa's always been rather... interested in those related to Poseidon. Like she said before, you're a trophy.”

“Oh,” Lance gulped. “Great.”

“I thought I had something to pick locks with in here... but I can't find it!”

“Hunk, you're panicking. Just relax. Everything's going to be okay,” Lance assured him, before turning to Pidge. “Pidge, you're a girl. Aren't you supposed to have a bobby pin or something to get us out of here?”

“If we weren't already being held by a monster, I would slap you.”

“You mustn't do that,” the lilting voice was enough to make all of them close their eyes at once, before they even saw her coming. “Can't have any blemishes. He's going to be the prize of my statue collection. Unlike yours, dear. I have no need for the statues of children of Athena. I think I'll crush yours into dust.”

“We're not going to be part of your statue collection,” Lance growled. “Just let us _go_.”

“Oh, relax, you can open your eyes now. I'm wearing my veil. Wouldn't want to turn you to stone before I've prepared, would I? Now, which one of you lovely children wants to volunteer to go first?”

No one spoke. Lance still didn't dare open his eyes.

“None of you? I suppose I'll take the small one, ladies first, they always say—”

“ _No_!” Lance shouted, quickly pushing himself up to his feet. “No, take me. I'll go first.”

“Lance...” Hunk sounded on the verge of tears.

“I'm the one you want a good statue of, right?” Lance asked, taking a step toward where he hoped the cage gate was. “I'll come with you. You can have time to perfect it that way. Take me first. I'm a child of Poseidon, right? The rarest one. If there's anyone you can't let escape, it's me.”

“Lance, what are you playing at?” Pidge demanded. “What are you doing?! The quest needs you, if she takes me—”

“I told you before,” Lance said firmly. “I'm not letting you die. Any of you. Not on my watch, not on my quest. So take _me_.”

Lance couldn't see Medusa ponder this, but he felt Pidge's grip on his arm slip away as someone else— someone with very sharp fingernails —dragged him out of the cage and across the courtyard. He could hear both of them calling after him, Hunk sounding tearful and Pidge sounded pissed, but he was just relieved that Medusa had actually listened. He didn't have his bow with him, but maybe... if he could figure out how to get away from her...

* * *

Keith stared at the building before him. DOA Studios had been in front of him just seconds ago, and that was in California. But somehow... he was now looking up at the neon, obnoxiously cursive sign for 'Aunty M's Garden Gnome Emporium.'

He didn't have time to wonder how it happened any longer, so he ran inside anyway. The others were in danger. Once he exited the building and ran into the courtyard, he could immediately hear shouting that sounded like... Pidge?

Keith wove in between the stone statues, trying not to think about the terror on their faces, and found himself in front of two large cages. In one was Pidge, banging on the bars and shouting. Hunk was in the other, crying and supporting an unconscious Matt. As he looked around, his blood ran cold. Lance wasn't with them.

“Where's Lance?!” he demanded, without thinking.

“Medusa took him!” Pidge cried, hacking at the bars with her dagger. “To the other side of the building! He... he volunteered to go first, I... she's going to turn him into a statue! We have to get to him! Keith, please, let us out so we can get to him!”

Keith quickly drew his swords, but... they did nothing against the cage's metal bars. “It's no use, without keys they won't open. Hunk, do you have anything that'll pick the lock?”

“I don't know!” Hunk sobbed. “I can't remember if I put anything in the belt to help or not, and without knowing exactly what I'm looking for I can't take it out. I already tried my axe...”

“Just get some first aid supplies and treat Matt, then,” Keith told him, and Hunk immediately began doing so. “I'll go take care of Medusa, and bring the keys back here.”

“Take care of— Keith are you _crazy_?!” Pidge was shaking her head wildly. “You can't fight her all by yourself! You'll be killed!”

“I won't be by myself. I'll have Lance.”

“Keith, Lance doesn't even have his bow with him,” Pidge's voice dropped to a whisper, and he wasn't sure he liked where she was going with it. “He... we have to face the possibility that Lance could already be—”

“Don't say it,” Keith cut her off, squeezing his eyes shut. “He's... he's fine, okay? He's going to be fine. I'm going to go save him.” He snatched the bow and a few scattered arrows up from the ground, starting back toward the indoor area.

“Wait, Keith!” Pidge shouted after him, and he turned with an impatient glare. “How... how did you even get here? Aren't you supposed to be in the Underworld with Shiro and Allura? Don't get me wrong, it's a good thing you're here, but...”

“Charon let the others pass, but not me, and then I had a dream where I saw you three get captured,” Keith shrugged. “So I came here right away. Seriously, I have to—”

“No, I mean... _how_ did you do it?” Pidge narrowed her eyes at him. “The entrance to the Underworld is in California! How could you possibly have gotten here so quickly? It doesn't make any sense.”

Keith considered telling her, but how could explain something he didn't even understand himself?

It was odd. The way his body seemed to melt into one shadow and reappear in another, how he felt like he was traveling insanely fast, how a wave of exhaustion hit him almost immediately after. It felt identical to those times that Shiro brought him along in a shadow-travel jump. But... that couldn't be it. Why would a child of _Ares_ be able to shadow-travel?

He shook his head to clear it, and completely ignored Pidge's question. “Hunk, have you got drachmas and IM supplies in that belt of yours?”

“Always.”

“Send an Iris Message to Coran. Tell him to send pegasi, we're going to need them to get back after I get Lance and the keys.”

“Back?” Pidge looked between the two of them. “Back where?”

_Where seven spark the balance's shift._

“We've got to meet Shiro and Allura in the Underworld,” Keith told her. “There's something we have to do there.” With these words, he ran off to find Lance.

 


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DOUBLE UPDATE THIS WEEKEND!
> 
> My tumblr, potato-fan-girl, hit 2K followers on Halloween, so... yeah. This is part of my thank you!

Allura had never been inside an elevator that went horizontally before. Granted, they had traveled down for a while, but she was positive that they were now traveling parallel to the ground.

She wondered if this had become common in the past ten years, but Shiro hadn't said anything of it. Then again, _he'd_ been to the Underworld before.

Just as she worked up the confidence to ask about this development, her surroundings flickered before changing altogether, once again not fazing Shiro.

The elevator was now a small, wooden barge, floating on what was probably the most polluted water Allura had ever seen. The shade of green was dark, too dark to be natural, and she could swear she saw something... _someone,_ or multiple people, moving below the surface. Spirits, she guessed.

Charon now wore a hooded black cloak, but she could still see his face. His eye sockets were completely void... just empty. Looking at them, Allura felt like she was staring Death itself in the face.

She had to remind herself that she wouldn't be doing _that_ until they met with Hades.

Soon enough, Charon was rowing the boat away and back into the river after the two of them disembarked, along with about half a dozen other lost souls. Allura nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw the fabled three-headed-dog, Cerberus, blocking their path. But Shiro walked past him with no incident, and when he growled at Allura, Shiro only offered him a brief, “She's with me.”

“Does being Hades' son really allow you such easy access to the Underworld?” she wondered, and Shiro seemed to resist a grimace.

“Technically, yes,” he answered. “But my father himself isn't exactly the most... welcoming god out there. Come on.” He led her past lines of lost souls, waiting for judgment, or carrying out some unspeakable punishment. The majority of these spirits were, however, milling about in a large field, babbling to each other in a language that made no sense to Allura's ears.

She was still trying to take it all in when she realized they'd arrived at Hades' palace. Shiro wasted no time in entering into the throne room, but Allura almost wanted to wait outside when she saw the beautiful garden that somehow existed underground.

“Persephone's,” Shiro nodded toward it. “She's not here, as it's summer. Unfortunately for us, that is. Remember, follow my lead in there, okay?”

The doors opened before Shiro even had a chance to knock, revealing the god of the dead sitting on his enormous, pitch black throne. All three Furies hovered in the air above him.

Hades stared at them blankly for a moment before speaking. “If it isn't my son, who failed his quest and lost an arm in the process. It's been too long. How many years was it again? Five? Your mortal lives are so petty and short, to me.”

“Father,” Shiro began, as if speaking the word caused him physical pain. “We've come here on a quest.”

“So they're giving one-armed half-bloods quests now? Not even surprising of Coran, that old fool, but even he isn't stupid enough to send a child of Zeus _here_. This is my realm, and your father can't save you here, girl.”

Allura visibly flinched.

“He sent her because I chose her to accompany me,” Shiro practically growled the words.

“I would've killed the girl already, if she was by herself,” Hades stated, tone never wavering. “Then again, I do have matters to discuss with her.”

“Matters?” Allura was able to ask, speaking for the first time.

“You cheated death,” Hades replied, with an eerie smirk. “Your father transformed you into stone just before you reached your limit, and thus saved your life. Now here you are, a decade later, alive and well. I was deprived of a soul, and a powerful one at that. Some nerve you have coming here. I see no reason why I shouldn't kill you both where you stand.”

“We come here seeking a blessing from you,” Shiro stepped in between Allura and his father. “That is my quest. Something big is starting, father, something that will put all demigods in danger. I believe that without whatever blessing you are supposed to bestow upon me, we cannot win.”

“A blessing, hmm?” Hades mused. “I'm assuming you'd want something to resolve your current state. Must be difficult trying to be Camp Half-Blood's golden boy, doing quest after quest, with just one arm. But you should know that blessings from one's godly parent are not easily received. You'll have to earn it. You'll _both_ have to earn your way out of here.”

“Father, we—”

“Let's get on with it, then,” Allura interrupted. “Whatever you're going to do, hurry up and do it. We don't have all day.” Shiro stared at her like she'd lost her mind, but it was worth it for the calculating glare Hades sent her way.

“Destroy them,” he said finally, speaking to the three Furies.

Shiro's remaining arm had his sword out within seconds. He was used to fighting with both a sword and shield, but he made do with just the former. Luckily, he was ambidextrous. He wasn't fighting his Fury for too long before he was able to slice it into a pile of yellow dust.

Allura's whip was activated in moments, uncoiling from around her arm. She weaved around the Fury and, bringing her whip up to meet it, brought it crashing to the ground. She cracked it again, this time aimed directly at the monster, who shortly after exploded into nothingness, as well.

Allura turned, only to see that Shiro was pinned down by the third fury, it's clawed talons digging into his torso ever so slightly, leaning down to screech in his face. His sword lay a few feet away. Surely Hades wouldn't let that monster kill his own son? But she wasn't about to take that chance.

Shiro was already at a huge disadvantage. Exhaustion from shadow-traveling, missing his mainly dominant arm and a shield, he was currently a fraction of his former self. Allura had to be willing to make sacrifices herself, too. She couldn't just let the people around her take all the damage. Not again.

She lifted her weapon high above her head, uncoiling it once more, and focusing all her powers. She hadn't used them since becoming unfrozen, but sure enough, dazzling arcs of bright pink lightning danced across the whip as it descended on the Fury. She wrapped it around the monster's waist and flipped her one-eighty degrees back onto the ground at top speed, destroying her instantly. Dust scattered about, and Allura sent a silent prayer thanking her father for the help, which she hoped would reach him ever from the Underworld. An exhaustion similar to that of Shiro's after shadow-traveling took hold of her, and she sank onto her knees in the dirt, struggling for breath.

Shiro pushed himself up onto his elbows, eyes wide in disbelief.

Hades just looked down at them for a moment. If he was surprised by how quickly the two demigods had beaten his three Furies, he didn't show it. Instead, he broke into a slow clap, mouth turned up slightly at the corners. “Well done. It appears I may have underestimated the two of you. Who would've guessed there to be such strong teamwork between two half-bloods of your parentage?”

“Are you going to grant us what we came for or not?” Allura demanded.

Hades chuckled, and waved his hand at Shiro. What remained of his right arm now seemed to be getting replaced with metal that glowed a pulsing, purple light. When the dark material settled, Shiro tried flexing his fingers. The new arm was clearly magical, as it responded to Shiro's nerves as a normal limb would.

“Stygian iron,” Hades informed him, before Shiro could ask. “A metal used by demigods, though far less common than your celestial bronze sword. Or that woven whip of yours.” He gestured briefly at Allura, then pointed at Shiro's sword, which immediately disintegrated into dust. “Relax. You won't be needing that old thing anymore.”

“What... what does it do?” Shiro asked, clearly in awe at his limb's replacement.

“Stygian iron is commonly used by my children,” Hades informed them. “It's a much more rare metal, but I assure you that from now on that arm will work for you as both a sword and, almost more importantly, a shield. It is a piece of weaponry, a piece of armor that can never be taken from you by the enemy. When you wish to use it as a weapon, it can harm monsters and mortals alike, but I already know you are careful enough to trust you with it.”

“Why would only children of Hades use something so brilliant?” Allura wondered, voice hushed.

“Too afraid of hurting mortals, maybe?”

“Cooled in the River Styx, stygian iron can often only be used to its full potential by children of the Underworld, such as yourself,” Hades informed them. “Killing a monster with it will prevent it from ever reforming.”

“It's impressive, albeit in an eerie way,” Allura admitted, though Shiro was too starstruck to contribute much else to the conversation. “What of me, Lord Hades?”

“You are allowed to leave here with your life,” he deadpanned. “You cheated death once, Allura, daughter of Zeus. But know that _I_ am not a fool, and you won't be so lucky the next time.”

Allura turned these words over in her head multiple times on their walk back to the River Styx, so they could ride the ferry back on Charon's next ship.

 


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter in the double update!
> 
> Honestly, I couldn't leave you without letting you know what'd happened to Keith and Lance, even if we did need to switch back to Allura and Shiro for a bit. So here they are!

Keith stormed into the other side of the building from the courtyard, both sword and dagger drawn. Still, even though he knew what to expect, that didn't stop him from feeling a jolt of panic once his eyes landed on the scene.

Lance stood stock-still, his shoulders scrunched up nearly to his ears, his head turned to the side, eyes pressed tightly shut. Medusa stood in front of him, without her veil. Keith shut his own eyes instinctively, though she was looking at Lance. If she chose to turn around, he'd be done for.

“Come on,” she was coaxing Lance now, putting her hands on her shoulders. “You give yourself up and refuse to open your eyes? How else will I add your wonderful statue to my collection? If you cooperate, I might even let your friends go.”

“You have to... you have to _swear_ that you'll let all of them go,” Lance insisted. “On... on the River Styx. So you won't be able to break it.”

Medusa scoffed. “I don't think you're in a position to make deals with _me_. Just open your eyes. It won't even hurt. A small chill, and then nothing.” Keith warily opened _his_ eyes, making sure to stare at the ground. He brought out his silver knife, using it's reflection to look at the scene before him. Then, he spoke.

“Don't listen to her, Lance. She's going to try and kill all of you anyway.”

“ _Keith_ ,” the word was hardly even a whisper, but Lance said it like hope itself. And then Lance was running, because Keith could see his feet as he stumbled blindly toward the sound of his voice. Keith held out a hand, which Lance searched for and took. He yanked the taller boy behind him, holding his sword out threateningly at Medusa while still watching her in the reflection of his blade.

“Let us go, and we'll let you live,” Keith growled. Medusa just laughed.

“If you think you are going to escape, then you're mistaken,” she informed him. “You'll just be another statue added to my collection, like all your friends.”

With an angry shout, Keith hurled his dagger at Medusa. There was the sound of it cutting her flesh, but no thud. So he'd missed her head. Not all that surprising, considering he couldn't see her. The knife flew back to his hand moments later, one of it's magical qualities.

“Why... why isn't she dead?” Lance asked, fingers tightening around Keith's. “You cut her, shouldn't she be a pile of dust right about now?”

“The only way to kill Medusa is to chop off her head,” Keith mumbled, through gritted teeth.

“How do we do that without _looking_ at her?!”

“I'm going to take her on with both my swords. Stay out of the way, I don't want you getting hurt,” Keith ordered, pressing the bow and few arrows he'd collected into Lance's hands before letting go. “And don't shoot unless your life is in danger, because you might hit me.”

“Keith? Wait, _Keith_ —”

But Keith was already charging towards Medusa, both swords raised. He swung them with everything he had, but despite all his training, without being able to open his eyes he was fighting completely blind. Because of this, he kept hitting too low, or air as Medusa dodged.

“Surprisingly powerful, for a child of Ares that is,” Medusa mused, stepping around another one of his attacks easily. “But all of you are just hotheads, really, exactly like your father. Too busy acting to stop and think. You'd already be dead if you were the one I was interested in.”

“Be quiet.”

“Fortunately for you, I only really want your friend. The son of the sea god? An irreplaceable addition to my collection, but the rest of you? Children of Athena, Hephaestus, and Ares are in overwhelming supply. If you go now and leave Lance here, I just might give the rest of you enough time to escape,” Medusa offered. “Or you could all stay here and die. Your choice.”

“Shut _up_.”

Behind him, Lance was hesitating. There was nothing he hated more than being useless, but there didn't seem to be anything he could do to help in the fight that wouldn't be in Keith's way. But if she'd _really_ let the others go...

“Keith, maybe you guys should just leave me here. If that's the only way, then— ”

“I said shut _up_ , Lance!” Keith shouted back, whirling around. “You're too important! We can't just let you die!

Lance didn't understand. _Why_ was he important? And why did Keith suddenly think so, of all people?

Keith stumbled and nearly lost his footing when Medusa suddenly surged past him, grabbing Lance around the throat and slamming him into the wall. He coughed sharply, wind knocked out of him. Her sharp nails were digging into his skin, drawing tiny pinpricks of blood.

Keith risked it, he opened his eyes. He saw Medusa holding Lance, and his vision seemed to go red. He raced between them, and squeezed his eyes shut just before cutting the hand that held Lance from Medusa's body. Lance fell to the ground with a thud, and Keith heard him scrambling backwards across the floor.

The monstrous woman was back onto fighting Keith in moments, now considerably more angry. “Never mind,” she practically hissed. “I think I'll kill this one first.”

Lance was still coughing on the ground, staring at the reflection of Medusa on Keith's sword as he fought with the blade. And Lance got an idea.

“Keith!” he shouted, across the store. “Toss me your sword!”

The other barely even glanced at him. “Lance, you're _terrible_ with—”

“Just... just trust me!”

Keith didn't say anything for a moment, then blindly tossed the celestial bronze sword in Lance's general direction before continuing to fight.

Lance caught it, and then quickly dropped it on the ground. If he angled it just right... he could see them fighting in the reflection of the weapon.

He lifted his bow. He'd have to do two shots, both very close to each other in time and distance, but... if she stayed in relatively the same place for long enough, he was sure he could do it.

He knocked one blue-feathered arrow, getting in stance. “MEDUSA!” he yelled, and when he saw her reflection turn he quickly adjusted his aim the tiniest amount, and let the arrow fly. Another was soaring towards her impossibly quick, just after the first hit its target.

Medusa howled in pain, and looking at the reflection, Lance could see that he'd done it. He looked at her hesitantly to find that yes, he had managed to shoot an arrow in both of her eyes. Medusa could no longer turn them to stone.

Keith wasted no time in chopping off her head with the dagger. The sound it made hitting the floor was nothing short of disgusting.

Lance let out a shaky breath, grabbing a nearby tablecloth to wrap around it, keeping the severed head hidden from sight. “That was... close.”

“Lance, that was brilliant,” Keith breathed, still staring at Medusa's body. “You... you completely saved us. Gods, I didn't even _think_ of that. Taking out her eyes? You're a genius!”

Lance's smile was there, but bitter. “If you hadn't showed up to help, I'd be as good as dead. The others, too, and this is supposed to _my_ quest. I'm definitely not a genius.”

“Well... maybe not, but it was still pretty cool.”

Lance laughed, smiling at Keith for real this time. Happy. Genuine. “Thanks, Keith. For saving me and... everything.” Lance shifted his gaze from him, only to bring it back a moment later. “Hang on. How'd... how'd you even _get_ here?”

Keith grimaced. “Long story.” He reached down, and pocketed Medusa's keys. “We should probably free the others before I tell it.”

“Ah. Yes. Good point.” He turned on his heel, starting back into the courtyard, but Keith grabbed his arm before he could.

“Lance, wait... um,” Keith stared at the ground. “I'm glad you're okay. Really, really glad.”

“Glad you're not dead either, Samurai.” Lance replied, and held out his arms for a hug, and it was as if an enormous weight was being lifted from Keith's chest as he was wrapped in his embrace.

“Thank you,” Keith murmured into Lance's shoulder.

When Lance drew back from the hug, it was with a grin that Keith couldn't help but match. “Friends?”

The smile disappeared off of Keith's face just as quickly at the word. “What?”

“Oh, please. Pidge told me herself that saving each other's lives is a pretty good foundation to build a friendship. And it's Pidge, so you _know_ she's right.”

Keith forced himself to look happy again, pushing down everything he felt as he nodded. “Yeah, _friends_.”

But the word was wrong. It wasn't even because Keith hadn't wanted to get attached, he knew it was much too late for that. He couldn't explain it, wasn't sure that he wanted to. It was in the way that Keith's heart swelled when Lance smiled, or seemed to stop completely whenever he got himself in danger, which was, admittedly, a lot.

The way that the word 'friend' when he looked at Lance made him incredibly happy, but also indescribably sad.

It didn't make sense, so Keith refused to think on it further, and buried his thoughts down. They'd just make things worse than they already were.

Keith moved past Lance, pushing his way through the door into the courtyard. But, when he only had one foot out the door, a bright, golden light filled the room.

 


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some important stuff in this chapter!! I hope you enjoy!
> 
> ...and I want to know what you guys think of this one, so feel free to comment your thoughts below.

Lance slowly turned around, once again discovering that somehow, after everything, this strange new world just kept on surprising him. Standing side by side, now in front of him and Keith, were two people who appeared to be in their late teens or early twenties.

One was a man dressed in gold with wavy blonde hair, and freckled, tan skin. The other seemed to be his polar opposite— a woman in silver with dark brown hair, and extremely pale skin. They both were of very athletic builds, however, and both carried a bow and arrows. And both of them, were, of course, extremely attractive.

In other words, Lance was reminded that he was very, _very_ bi.

Lance turned to Keith, about to ask him who they were, only to find that he was kneeling, with his head bowed. When he saw that Lance was still standing, he yanked him down.

“Who are they?” Lance asked out of the corner of his mouth.

Keith looked nothing short of horrified. “ _Who are_ — that's Apollo and Artemis! The god of the sun, music, poetry, healing, and prophecy and the goddess of the moon, wildlife, and the hunt!”

“Seriously?” Lance looked up at them, before turning back to Keith. “The kids at camp thought _he_ was my dad?”

Keith waved a hand. “The gods can appear any age they want to.”

“Well, yeah, but I'd hate for him to be my _dad._ He's so hot!” Lance sincerely hoped his voice was low enough that the two apparent all-powerful beings couldn't hear him.

“He's the sun god, Lance,” Keith said, and Lance nearly burst into laughter right then and there. Keith was undoubtedly the most oblivious person he'd ever met.

“That is _not_ what I meant.”

Keith blinked.

“Rise,” Apollo instructed. “And look at us. We will give you both blessings. And you will be awesome.”

“If you're going to be the god of poetry, you could at least get the right amount of syllables in a haiku,” Artemis scoffed. “You had _one_ job.”

“Well, _excuse me_ ,” Apollo mocked bowing to his sister, before turning back to the two boys. “The two of you did a very impressive job, taking down Medusa by yourselves!”

“What have you come to discuss with us?” Keith asked, bowing his head again in respect. Lance was completely thrown for a loop by his behavior. Keith? Acting _polite_?

“Unlike some gods,” Apollo cast a pointed look at the sky. “I can recognize when a hero is worthy of a blessing. Personally, I don't know what Poseidon is waiting for, but I watched your archery skills just now. You have a gift, no doubt about that. May I?” He reached for Lance's bow, which he handed over.

The weapon seemed to flicker, and then it was transforming in Apollo's hands. Keith's eyes widened. “ _A golden bow_...” he whispered softly. Lance glanced his way, but his attention was back on the weapon within seconds.

“Imperial gold,” Apollo told him. “Not as popular as celestial bronze, at least with _you_ demigods, but I prefer it, personally. It'll work just the same as it did with wood, but I think this one is a bit more sturdy, don't you?”

“I... I don't know what to say. Thank you, so much, I—”

Apollo held up a hand. “I'm not finished yet. You are clearly a worthy hero, and you deserve a weapon just as powerful as you are. As the god of archery, I shall enchant this bow so it will never miss.” He waited for Lance's thanks.

Lance just stared at him blankly. “But... I already never miss.”

Keith looked like he was about to have a heart attack, and he slapped a hand over Lance's mouth. “I am _so_ sorry about him, he's—”

Apollo was laughing. “No, it's alright. I appreciate confidence. Tell me, son of the sea god, what would you prefer?”

Lance's gaze was drawn to the quiver at his back, now empty. “If possible, I'd just like my arrows back.”

Apollo nodded, and touched a finger to the quiver. It filled up with twelve blue-feather arrows, followed by the four modified ones. “You will find that whenever you take an arrow out, a new one will form in it's place. You will never run out again.”

The grin on Lance's face was immediate. “Thank you.” Apollo gave the bow back to him, and Keith felt something inside him ache at the sight of Lance holding it. _A golden bow, a golden bow._

He thought he'd moved _past_ this.

“I finally have a magical weapon!” Lance cheered, pumping his fist in the air, and Keith glared at him. Lance stuck his tongue out. “You're not allowed to be jealous, because you already have _two_.”

Artemis was stepping forward now, and she put a hand on Keith's shoulder. “I may not have a blessing, but I can give you something you'd want more. Would you like to know about your past? About your mother?”

Keith knew this woman was a god, but he yanked his shoulder away from her touch immediately. “My mother is _dead,_ ” he said bitterly, painfully aware that Lance was still standing there. “She was killed by a monster that was looking for _me_ over five years ago, and all I have left of her is this stupid knife and that she told me to go to Camp Half-Blood. I only ever found it because I ran into Shiro, who was on the run, too. I don't need you to _tell_ me about my past.”

Artemis' gaze was fixed on the silver dagger. She sighed. “Didn't you ever wonder where your mother _got_ a magical weapon, such as that? Even regular demigods don't use silver weapons.”

Keith's eyes widened. “The... the only people that use silver are the Huntresses. _Your_ huntresses. But... why would my mother have a hunting knife from them? Unless...?”

Artemis' smile turned sad. “She was once a huntress, in my order. But, as you know, in order to be a huntress of Artemis, you must swear off all men. She left for love, for your father, Ares. The monsters that were her end were there for her as much as you.”

Keith tried to take in this information. The fact that his mother had somehow been involved in all this mythology business before even meeting his dad. The fact that her death... all these years... hadn't actually been all his fault.

“You may keep the knife,” Artemis told him. “It belongs to you now. But there is something else I must tell you about your past. Tell me, Keith. You must know by now you are no ordinary child of Ares, after what you've discovered you can do?”

“Keith?” Lance's voice was wary, and Keith flinched. He'd forgotten that the other boy was still there. “What does she mean?”

“I... I can shadow-travel.” The words hung in the air for a moment.

“Your grandmother on your mother's side was a daughter of Hades,” Artemis told him. “Even though your grandfather was an ordinary mortal, because he's such a powerful god your mother inherited some of the powers. This was how she found me. It appears you, too, are capable of using these powers, though they are beyond your control. Your concern for a friend in danger was so great that it allowed you to shadow-travel to his location. Though if you cannot learn to harness these powers, they may prove more a risk than a help.”

Keith didn't think he'd have been able to talk if he wanted to. Artemis turned to Lance.

“The Underworld holds the key to completing your quest, blue one. You must meet the others there,” she told him, and stepped back to stand with her brother once more. “Think about what we've said.” The two of them disappeared in another flash of light which both of the boys averted their eyes from.

They stood there for a second. Then, Keith turned and stormed out the door, taking the keys out of his pocket. “Come on, we've got to get the others.”

“Keith, if you wanna talk about it, I'll—”

“I said let's _go_ , Lance.”

* * *

It wasn't until they were flying back to DOA recording studios on the three pegasi that Lance brought it up again. Hunk was by himself, and Pidge was carefully holding Matt, who was only just regaining consciousness after being given ambrosia for his wounds and lack of nourishment. Keith was flying the third pegasus, and in order to stay on Lance had his arms wrapped around the other's waist, his head buried in Keith's shoulder.

Keith hadn't been too thrilled about the contact at first but he had to admit it felt... nice, flying with Lance like that, the sunset ahead of them.

“Thank you,” Lance mumbled, finally breaking the quiet. “Again.”

“For what?” Keith asked, with a small laugh. “You're the one that saved us back there. Give yourself some credit.”

“I don't know. Thank you for... for being there, I guess. It seems like you're always there for me, to get me out of the messes I'm in. So, thank you.” His voice was shaking, very slightly. But Keith noticed it.

“I'll always be there,” Keith told him, before he really had the chance to think about it. Lance's breath hitched.

“I... want you to know that I won't tell the others what Artemis said. That's your business, you can tell who you want to know, and I'll keep it a secret, I promise. But...”

“But?”

“But if you _do_ want to talk about it with me, I'm listening,” Lance's voice had become so soft, it was little more than a whisper. “I want to be able to always be there for you, too.”

Keith felt a lump lodge in his throat. Lance _wouldn't_ always be there, that was the thing. And Keith knew that. But he didn't deserve to have that bomb dropped on him just yet.

“You already are,” Keith told him instead, and it was the truth. He just wished it could stay like this forever.

 


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter finally brings some attention to one of the background ships you can find in the tags!
> 
> I'm warning you though, it gets pretty angsty from here on out, as we near the end of this work. This chapter is kind of like the calm before the storm... anyway, I hope you enjoy it!

When Allura and Shiro walked outside of DOA studios building searching for Keith, they instead found Lance, Pidge, Hunk, Keith, three pegasi, and a very out of it Matt Holt, still recovering from injuries.

Naturally, some explaining was in order.

Before Lance could even open his mouth however, Shiro was rushing forward, drawing Matt into his arms and helping him off the pegasus.

“ _Matt_ , oh my gods, you're okay, you're _alive_ , I'm so sorry— did they hurt you? Are you hurt? What happened? I'm so glad you're out of there, you have no _idea_ how worried I was—”

Matt let out a short laugh that quickly descended into a coughing fit. “I'm _fine_ , Shiro, would you relax? Besides, with all the quests you go on, I know exactly how you feel.”

Shiro gave him a sheepish smile. “Sorry?”

“And why are you asking _me_ if I'm okay?!” Matt suddenly demanded, attempting to stand up straight only to fall into Shiro's arms again. He kept ranting nonetheless. “The last I saw of you was a severed arm. An _arm_ , Shiro! Do you have any idea how worried I was? You could be dead, and I wouldn't have known! I see somehow you've got a new, metal arm now, so that's _great,_ but when in Hades' name did Hunk have time to—”

Shiro cut him off with a kiss, which Matt wasted no time in reciprocating. Lance seemed to be the only one surprised by this development, the others were all acting as if it were the most normal thing in the world. He grabbed Pidge's arm and pulled her next to him.

“Matt and Shiro? They're together? I thought they were best friends!?” he hissed.

Pidge just stared at him blankly. “Of course they're together. They've been dating for over a year now. And they _are_ best friends. Did you seriously not know that until now? I thought it was obvious.”

“Right. Of course. Obvious,” Lance nodded, while mentally kicking himself.

“Get a _cabin,_ you two!” Pidge shouted, cupping her hands around her mouth. “I'm your little sister! Aren't you going to say anything to me?”

“Hi, Pidge. I don't purposefully mess up your love life so if you could maybe _not_ do that, I'd be eternally grateful,” Matt deadpanned, then turned back to Shiro with a small smile. “I'll forgive you for worrying me if you forgive me for worrying you?”

Shiro snorted. “Deal.”

“We both know you'd mess up my love life if I had one,” Pidge said, trying to sound irritated. But Lance could see the smile she fought to keep off her face. “Now get over here and give me a hug, you idiot! I'm the one who flew you over here on a pegasus!” Matt laughed, but ran over and swept his little sister up in his arms, twirling her around. As he did so, he looked around at the rest of them.

“Hunk, good to see you, as always. And Lance! On a quest already? Seems like you've gotten more used to this whole thing since I last saw you. Then again, Shiro and I left only a week after you showed up. You been claimed yet?”

“Uh, yeah,” Lance said. “Poseidon, it turns out.”

Matt's eyes grew so wide it looked as if they'd pop out of his head. “Poseidon?” he echoed, looking to his boyfriend. Shiro chuckled, and nodded in confirmation. Matt whistled. “Damn. My money was on Apollo, but now that you say it I can totally see Poseidon. Well, regardless, I'm glad your dad finally claimed you, man. I just feel stupid for not realizing the similarities sooner.”

Keith snorted. “Matt, if you're stupid then what does that make the rest of us?”

Matt glanced at him, then seemed to do a double take. “Woah, _Keith_?! You're on this quest?” Before he could even answer the question, Matt finally let go of Pidge and tackled him in a hug. “I'm so proud of you for finally deciding to do it!” He ruffled Keith's hair, which made the son of Ares' face go slightly red from embarrassment.

Seeing this made something almost painful twinge in Lance's chest. Longing.

He shoved it down.

“This is a most heartwarming reunion,” Allura spoke up. “But I'm afraid I'm still confused. Why are the four of you here?”

Matt seemed to notice her for the first time, and immediately released Keith, who stumbled into Lance. “Who's that?” he whispered to Pidge, out of the corner of his mouth.

“Allura, daughter of Zeus,” Pidge told him. “Girl from the statue? She's unfrozen. Long story short, the magical crystal Shiro brought back from your quest healed her.”

Matt shrugged. “Well, at least something good came out of that quest. You know, if I wasn't already dating the hottest person at camp, I would definitely—”

Pidge elbowed him in the ribs.

“Ow! Hey, I'm still healing here!”

She cleared her throat. “The lines of our prophecy, Allura. The two quests are supposed to form one, and eventually seven of us will be in this 'other realm', presumably the Underworld, right?” Pidge looked around at all of them. “There must be something happening there we have to stop.”

“Zarkon,” Matt whispered, the easygoing smile he'd had on his face now completely gone. All heads turned to him. “I... uh, it's the name of the giant that had me captive. He gave me up to Medusa in exchange for information about something he has to do in the Underworld? I didn't hear many of the details, but he seems to be the connection between us all. Whatever's going on, it's his doing.”

Allura's eyes darkened. “Zarkon is the giant who killed the demigods I was traveling with, before I could get to camp.”

“So, it's definitely him, and it's definitely the Underworld,” Lance summed up. “I mean, Artemis did tell me the Underworld is the key to completing this quest.”

“ _Artemis_? You've got to be kidding,” Hunk laughed nervously. “You're kidding, right?”

Lance shook his head. “She and Apollo came to speak to Keith and I after we killed Medusa. Gave my bow some wicked improvements, if I do say so myself. I officially have a magical item.” Here he patted his quiver of arrows happily, and Hunk high-fived him.

“What'd they want to ask you, Keith?” Shiro asked, and Keith flinched.

“Speaking of Keith, how was he even _there_?” Pidge wondered. “It makes no sense, why he'd be able to travel so fast. There's just no logical explanation for it. We only got here because of the pegasi Coran sent.” Everyone was looking at Keith expectantly.

“You don't have to tell them,” Lance reminded him, a grounding hand falling onto his shoulder.

Keith shook his head. “It's okay,” he assured Lance, drawing in a deep breath before speaking again. “I shadow-traveled.”

No one said anything at first.

“But... Keith, how?” Shiro wondered. “You're a child of Ares. That shouldn't be possible.”

Keith nodded. “It shouldn't, but... my mom, she was a descendent of Hades. Her mother was a demigod. She joined the huntresses of Artemis, which is where she got the silver knife that she gave me, all those years ago. But... she left them, for my... my dad. Ares.”

Shiro's eyes widened in understanding. “That's why the monster was sent after you two.”

Keith nodded, biting his lip. “Artemis told me. I can't control the powers yet, or maybe ever. After I woke up from dreaming about Lance, Pidge, and Hunk getting captured I raced outside, and then before I knew it I was standing in front of Medusa's shop, exhausted. I wouldn't even have known what it was if I hadn't traveled with you so many times, Shiro.”

“Can you use other powers Shiro has?” Hunk asked eagerly. “Like, could you summon undead warriors? Or find jewels in the ground? Or—?”

“Could you shadow-travel somewhere now?” Pidge interrupted.

Keith shook his head. “Like I said, I don't know. I can't control it. I think it just... happened, sort of, because I was so worried. I don't know how to explain it.”

“Having a power like that and not knowing how to use it is dangerous, Keith,” Shiro warned. “And the number of times you can use it before you exert yourself is probably even less than mine. If I were you, I'd try to avoid using it at all.”

“I will,” Keith promised. “Try, that is. I'm... I'm sorry, I just didn't know.”

Shiro's face softened. “Don't apologize, it isn't your fault.”

“Enough about Keith's super secret new powers,” Pidge interrupted. “What's the plan? Do all seven of us go down there? It is in the prophecy, but should we split up? I think it's a bad idea, but if we don't know exactly what we're looking for then it could give us more time to find this Zarkon guy. I mean, the Underworld is pretty big.”

“We definitely shouldn't split up,” Lance decided. “If only a small group of us runs into him, he could take us down easily. Even if it'll take longer, we've got to stay together. We'll be stronger that way.”

“Then we should know where we're headed before going down there. Matt, do you remember anything that can narrow it down?”

Matt pressed a hand to his forehead, as if trying to remember. “The river... something about a river. Zarkon wanted something from the River Styx.”

“Yeah,” Lance said. “That's what they were talking about in my dream, too.”

Pidge's face paled. “ _Who desires what the gods possess_...”

“What is it, Pidge?” Keith took a step towards her, but she only shook her head.

“It's nothing. Let's... let's hope I'm wrong. Anyway, if it's got something to do with the River Styx, that narrows it down, but not by much. The river runs across the entire Underworld. It wouldn't be near the front, because that's where Charon is. But anywhere else is fair game.”

“Well, it'd probably be at the opposite end of the river, right?” Lance looked around at the others, as if unsure. “You know, to avoid being seen. Where's the farthest point of the river from Charon? Probably far from Hades' castle, too?”

Pidge racked her brain, then her eyes lit up. “The Fields of Punishment. He wouldn't be seen by anyone other than condemned souls, and when would they have a chance to say anything?”

“But none of the spirits can talk, can they?” Allura wondered. “At least not to anyone but each other.”

“No, they can, but only to Hades or his children,” Shiro told them. “You're right, Pidge. If he wants to access the River Styx without prying eyes, it'd be close to the Fields of Punishment. You're a genius!”

Pidge smirked. “Tell me something I don't know.”

“If we're going to travel to the other side of the river, we'd better get a move on,” Hunk piped up. “It'll take us much longer to get there. I don't know when this... Zarkon is planning to do whatever he's doing, but I'd bet that it's soon.”

“Let's get going then,” Lance grinned at all of them, and the others nodded, racing into the building and pushing through the crowd of wayward souls.

“Oh, joy,” Charon drawled, upon seeing them. “More demigods.”

 


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter coming later than usual... I'm sorry about that, as my life's been really hectic, but I hope you enjoy it!

Charon was extremely vocal in complaining about his job, and how much he despised 'godlings', until Shiro pulled out the golden drachmas. As he'd promised, bribing the gatekeeper to the realm of the dead was surprisingly easy.

_Figures_ , Lance thought to himself as the elevator transformed into a small, wooden barge that Charon was paddling across a dark green river. The River Styx.

Absentmindedly, Lance concentrated on staring at it. He hadn't even realized what he was trying to do until he felt a tug in his gut, and a small, puddle-sized amount of the water floated into the air before splashing back down. If the liquid in the River Styx could even be _called_ water, that is. Regardless, Lance was sort of proud that he could control it. He'd had agonizingly little time to practice his actual demigod powers both before and during this quest, focusing mainly on archery to solve his problems, as sources of water hadn't been very present previously.

He considered trying to talk to Keith, but the other boy seemed lost in thought, and Lance couldn't blame him. Everybody else was already engaged in conversation. So he kept quiet.

As they continued down the river, he started to hear what sounded like a voice whispering in his ears. None of the others mentioned anything of the kind, so he assumed it was just the souls of the dead all around them. Just another weird aspect of the Underworld.

It was odd, though. The voice got slightly louder with each passing second, and it seemed almost... familiar? Lance could swear he'd heard it before. But where?

He shook his head to clear it, resolving to ignore the sound. Nothing good would come of paying attention to the voices of the dead.

Regardless, who or... whatever was speaking kept on steadily increasing in volume the farther along the river they sailed. By the time the barge ran onto the Underworld's ground, Lance couldn't hear much else besides the voice and the blood rushing in his ears. Still, the exact words that were being said escaped him. How could he not know?

The voice was sweet, and it seemed to almost put Lance's worries at ease even though he knew the eerie whispers should be scaring him. It was comforting... and disconcerting all at once. It was like hearing an old friend.

Lance stepped off the ship, finally ready to ask Shiro about it, as the others couldn't possibly just ignore such a thing, could they?

But the moment his feet touched the soil, Lance's mind seemed to go completely blank of all thought, and his vision blurred briefly before snuffing out, like a candle. He could see nothing, and _hear_ nothing but the voice, and even that sounded as if it was speaking through water.

But he _had_ to listen to it.

* * *

Keith noticed the strange, dazed expression that came over Lance's face the second they were off the ship. He was simply staring off into the distance.

“Lance...?” Keith waved a hand in front of the other's face, earning no response. “Lance, are you feeling okay?”

And then he was running.

With no warning at all, Lance took off at a full-blown sprint, running past the others towards some unknown goal. Keith was tearing after him without even considering other options, mind reeling. Wasn't Lance the one who'd said they _shouldn't_ split up?

“LANCE!” Keith shouted. “LANCE, SLOW DOWN! WHAT'S GOING ON!?” He could hear the thundering footfalls of the others behind him, and still see Lance as he wove through the crowds of souls, just ahead.

Keith cursed. Lance was quicker than he thought.

“Where in Hades is he _going_?” Shiro yelled from behind him, just as confused as Keith felt.

“I thought we had a plan!” Hunk complained. “Why do _none_ of you ever stick with the plan? We make plans for a reason, people! Honestly, sometimes I think I'm the only one of you without a death wish!”

“Shiro,” Allura's voice was calm, quieter than the others. “Pidge, Matt. Do any of you know what's in the direction Lance is headed? Maybe if we know where he's going, we'll know why.”

“There's nothing the way he's going!” Shiro told them. “Judgement, punishment, the fields, Elysium, everything is off in different directions, but he's not running towards any of those! Just straight back! All he'll reach is the cave walls.”

“Shiro's right,” Pidge agreed. “There's nothing down there except... except... oh _no._ ”

“What is it? Keith demanded, not risking the time to stop and look back at her. “What's wrong? Where's he going?”

“Tartarus,” Matt said, and the word seemed to draw the very breath from all of them. “The deepest, darkest, most terrible part of the Underworld. There's a cave-like entrance, and then it slopes down, down, down and drops off completely into the pit and... Lance is headed directly towards it.”

Keith let this information sink it, horror settling deep in the pit of his stomach.

“This is  _not_ happening today,” Keith mumbled under his breath, running with everything he had. He careened into the cave entrance that Lance had disappeared into moments before, and drew up short for a split second.

Just long enough to see Lance standing at the edge of the pit, staring down into the depths.

Keith half-ran, half-slid down the slope to reach drop-off, just as Lance stepped off into the darkness below. But Keith's arm shot out, and he forced his heels to dig into the gravel as he grabbed Lance's arm with both hands, yanking upwards with all his strength.

For a terrifying moment, he struggled to hold Lance upright. It seemed Keith wouldn't be able to support his weight, or the leftover momentum wouldn't stop. For just that moment, Keith thought they might both go over the edge. But he didn't let go, anyway. He immediately decided that if Lance was falling down there, then so was he.

And then Keith felt strong arms around his waist, pulling him and Lance both back up. He didn't even turn to see that it was Hunk until Lance's shoes was a yard from the edge of the cliff. Hunk was panting heavily, looking unbelievably relieved. They both were.

“Thanks,” Keith breathed out, before propping himself up and crawling to Lance's side. The other boy was sprawled out on the gravelly sand that made up the Underworld floor, eyes shut. Unconscious. “Lance?  _Lance_ , wake up.”

His eyelids fluttered open, and Keith let loose a breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding in, pressing his forehead to Lance's chest.

“Thank the gods.”

“Wha... Keith?” Lance sat up slowly, but Keith's didn't let go of him, arms wrapped around the taller boy's waist.  _That was too close_ . “What... what happened?”

“You don't remember?” Pidge was beside them now, planting a protective hand on the top of Lance's head, messing up his hair a bit. “You... you tried to run into the pit. You nearly threw yourself into Tartarus. You're telling me you don't remember _that_?”

“I... I don't know,” Lance admitted, scooting backwards from the edge. “One second I was hearing this voice, and then next thing I know... I wake up here.”

“A voice?” Allura knelt down next to him. “What voice? What did it say?”

“I'm... not sure? I don't exactly remember _what_ it said, but... it sounded familiar. I'm sure I've heard whoever was speaking before, but... my head went all foggy, and I couldn't exactly make sense of it,” Lance rubbed his temple. “That didn't happen to any of you?”

Shiro approached them warily. “None of us were hearing any voices, Lance. Are you still hearing it?”

Lance shook his head. “No. Whatever it was... it's gone now.”

“You say your head went foggy? And you heard a familiar voice?” Keith asked, heart rate quickening. “And you almost completely forgot what happened?” He'd heard these descriptions before, back at camp. But surely, it couldn't be. He was jumping to conclusions. There was no way...

Lance nodded. “Yeah, but I don't remember much of anything after that. I can't believe it... did I really run here? It's a good thing you guys were there to save me or I'd... probably be dead right now.”

“It was no trouble,” Hunk assured him, standing to help Lance up. “You had us all really freaked out for a second. There's no telling what happens to a demigod who winds up in Tartarus.”

Lance gulped, leaning on Hunk for a beat before shifting to carry his own weight. “Good thing we'll never have to find out.”

Pidge nodded. “You can say that again.” She stood, dusting off her hands on her shorts. “Well, now that  _that's_ happened, let's get back to the river and see if we can find this 'Zarkon' guy.”

 


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this is a bit later than usual. But honestly, I think you're going to be thankful at the shorter wait until the next one.

In the end, they didn't find Zarkon so much as he found them. In fact, almost as soon as the group of half-bloods got back to the river, he was there. Ready for them.

And he'd brought friends with him, too. Several other giants accompanied him, and Lance had to admit they didn't look at all like he'd expected. They were varying shades of purple, all with rather large ears, with the exception of Zarkon himself. He looked... somewhat like an overgrown, greyish turtle. Lance would've laughed if the guy wasn't so terrifying.

“What kind of giants are these?” Lance hissed in Pidge's ear.

She grimaced. “Galra. Mostly crosses between giants and other sorts of monsters.”

Hunk nodded in agreement. “In one word— bad.”

Lance lined up an arrow, but none of the monsters moved. Zarkon's eyes seemed to light with amusement as his cold stare bored into him.

“Well, well,” Zarkon took a step forward, causing every demigod to pull out their weapons. He smiled. “It appears the son of the sea god managed to survive. A shame, but I know I'll get other chances, so I can't be too disappointed.”

“Try whatever you want, but we're not letting you get away with this,” Lance's voice was surprisingly firm, despite the fear he felt.

“Get away with  _what_ , exactly?” Zarkon asked, taking another step closer to them. “Do you puny mortals even know why I'm here?”

There was a brief silence, but Pidge shoved herself to the front, glaring up into Zarkon's glowing, purple eyes. Lance had to grab her arm to keep her in a safe distance. “I do. You want to use the power of the River Styx, right? Like Achilles. Completely invincible, with one weak spot that only you know about.”

Zarkon seemed almost impressed. “A very clever hero, this one. Though I suppose that's to be expected from a child of Athena.”

“And you're even dumber than I thought you were,” Pidge shot back. “You're a monster! Not just because you're terrible, I mean  _literally_ . Monsters are already immortal, technically speaking. Every time you die, you'll just reform in weeks, months, or years. What's the point?”

“Maybe you're not that bright after all,” Zarkon mused, looking out across the dark water. “Though I will reform, I can still  _die_ . I wish to be invincible. No one will be able to kill, or even injure me. Immortal, like the gods themselves.”

Keith scowled. “If you think we're going to let you—”

“You mortals act so high and mighty, but if you were given the option of eternal life, would you pass it up?” he looked around at all of them. “I will be untouched by death one day when I achieve my goal, that much I can promise. The same can't be said for you, child of Poseidon. Just because you managed to survive this time doesn't change the fact that ultimately, you will die before all this is over.”

Lance took a staggering step backwards. “What...?”

“He's just trying to get in your head, Lance,” Pidge warned him. “Don't listen. Come on, let's take him down!”

Everyone looked just as confused as Lance felt by what Zarkon had said. Maybe Pidge was right. Maybe it didn't mean anything.

Then Lance's eyes landed on Keith, who didn't seem confused at all. In fact, he looked absolutely livid. And... a little scared?

The anger made sense, but... the words 'Keith' and 'scared' simply did not belong in the same sentence.

Zarkon noticed the look on Keith's face, and grinned. “So you've read it, too? The Great Prophecy? How tragic it must be, knowing what you know.”

“Shut up.” Keith's voice was dangerous.

“Keith,” Shiro said, taking a step towards the younger demigod. “Calm down. He just wants to get to you, like Pidge said.”

“Yeah,” Pidge agreed, though she looked uneasy. “Don't listen to him.”

“He knows I'm right,” Zarkon pointed out. “Do you really think you can run away from what you _know_ is going to happen? Prophecies don't lie, son of Ares. There's nothing you can do to stop it.”

“Enough of this,” Allura stared Zarkon down. “You're stalling, because you know you cannot win. Come quietly, or we'll be forced to turn you to dust.”

“There is no way you get out of this invincible, or even alive,” Matt added.

“Spare me,” Zarkon scoffed. “I have seen the future, and I know the odds favor me. Or, at the very least, I have a  _chance_ at making it through this in one piece.” The giant cast a pointed look at Lance again, and he shivered.

“Keith, what's he talking about?” Lance asked, voice wavering slightly.

Keith only glanced at him before focusing all his attention back on Zarkon. “I said,  _shut up_ !”

“Ah, so you haven't told him yet,” Zarkon mused. “What a terrible friend you are, keeping something like that from him. If you'd like me to explain it,  _Lance_ , then I'd be happy to—”

With an angry shout, Keith lunged forward, throwing himself at the giant. Zarkon blocked the swing of his blade easily, but Keith didn't stop there. He swung again, and again, forcing Zarkon to stay on defense.

“Oh, great,” Matt grumbled sarcastically. “Guess we're fighting an army of giants now.” He twirled his staff in the air, and then brought it down directly on the nearest monster's head.

Pidge shrugged before launching herself at another with what could only be described as a battle cry. Hunk just sighed, and started swinging his axe. Allura immediately tied a giant up in her whip and slammed him into the ground. Shiro fought with his Stygian iron arm as if he was already a natural.

But they just kept coming.

Lance took out the farthest ones with well-placed shots to their heads or torsos, but Keith was right. A bow wasn't a weapon built for close range combat, which was currently staring him in the face. All his friends were fighting with all of their strength, but what could Lance do? Wait for a clear target? Hope he didn't accidentally kill one of the other demigods in the process?

“Sendak,” Zarkon said suddenly, dodging away from Keith. “Deal with this one. I'd like to... have a chat with the Chosen.”

One of the giants fighting near Pidge intercepted Keith, who continued to fight wildly with both of his weapons. Zarkon, on the other hand, took a step toward Lance. An arrow was pointed at his face within seconds.

“Oh, come now,” Zarkon shook his head. “You can't possibly think such a puny weapon will do anything to me?”

“Maybe you're right,” Lance shrugged. “Maybe not. They certainly did a number on Medusa, though.”

Something flashed in the giant's eyes. “Ah, yes. I had wondered how you'd managed to escape her. Pity she couldn't handle one simple task, but my hopes for her weren't that high to begin with.”

“You just needed her information. You gave her Matt so she would tell you what you wanted to know about the River Styx, that it's powers would work on you just as they did to Achilles.”

“So it  _was_ you eavesdropping while you dreamt. I should've known. The more powerful a demigod is, the more problems they cause in their sleep,” Zarkon took a step forward, and Lance pulled the arrow back, freezing him in place once again. “But you're not asleep now. Here, you aren't safe.”

“Neither are you,” Lance pointed out. “My friends have disintegrated tons of _your_ friends already. Face it, you're beaten. We know your plan.”

“If only that were true. You can't  _possibly_ know my plan.”

“I know you think you can be a god,” Lance shot back. “I know that you'll stop at nothing to get the power you want. And I know that I'm not going to let you win.”

“Look around you,” Zarkon gestured at the fight on all sides. Lance got the strange feeling that he was standing in the eye of a hurricane. “Even if you think you have the upper hand, you don't. You half-bloods are outnumbered. And yes, you might kill us and force us to reform, but do you really think you'll be able to beat us every time? No matter how many times, I'll come back eventually, and just try again.”

“I  _will_ beat you every time. I'll send you back to Tartarus as many times as it takes, because of what you've done,” Lance declared, without hesitation. “Because it's my job. I'm a  _hero_ .” The words felt like the truth.

Zarkon laughed in his face anyway. “You're no hero,” he spat. “You're a  _fool_ . You'll have to fight and win against me multiple times to keep me from this, from my goal. But you are like an ordinary mortal. You only have to mess up  _once_ .”

Lance gulped. He couldn't deny the truth to Zarkon's words. “If you think that I'm going to give up, then—”

“Oh, I'm not saying you'll give up. I don't think any of you will give up,” Zarkon gestured around them again, and Lance took in the sight. A giant had Allura's whip winded around his arm, and he used the momentum to send her sprawling. Matt's staff had been snatched out of the air mid-swing. Shiro was clutching his metal arm... did overusing it hurt him? Hunk's axe was lodged in a giant's shield. Pidge was grappling for her dagger, the point currently turned toward her own hands. One of Keith's swords had been knocked out of his hand. Maybe Zarkon was right... they  _were_ outmatched. “I'm saying you're going to  _lose_ .”

With these words, Zarkon turned and stepped into the River Styx. Lance's arrow didn't do anything, and he felt a rush of hopelessness.

And then, Lance felt a familiar tug in his gut.

 


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please tell me what you think of this chapter, because I'm not sure about it? I feel like it definitely could've been longer, but I didn't really want to add anything to it, either. We're in the home stretch, though! Four more chapters of THIS work, but keep in mind that this is going to be a series, most likely with three works. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

Keith's heart dropped as he heard the massive splash. He'd been so fixated on fighting Sendak that he'd ignored Zarkon completely.

At least the distraction to both sides gave the others enough time to regain their composure, taking their weapons out of enemy hands. But at what cost?

That's when Keith saw him. Lance. He was kneeling on the bank of the river with clenched fists, Zarkon nowhere in sight. Had the giant injured him and then jumped into the Styx? That's what it looked like from where Keith was standing. He stumbled forward, reaching for him—

“Don't stop fighting!” Lance shouted, not turning to look at them. His shoulders were shaking, voice unsteady. “We haven't lost! Not yet!”

“What's he talking about?” Matt asked, looking around at the others. “Didn't Zarkon go into the river?”

“He... the river...” Shiro seemed at almost a complete loss for words. “Look.” He pointed upwards, to where the dark, sickeningly green water of the River Styx floated high above them.

“Gods above,” Allura whispered.

“Since when can he do that?!” Hunk wondered, looking nothing short of panicked. “I didn't know he could do that! Pidge, did you know he could do that?”

“I've heard children of Poseidon could manipulate water but... the River Styx?” Pidge shook her head, still staring in awe. “I can hardly believe it.”

Keith was still taking in the scene himself. Zarkon was at the bottom of what would've been the River Styx, but the water from the entire section was hovering in the air above him instead, held there by Lance, who already looked nothing short of exhausted.

“I don't care if I lose,” Lance spoke, and Keith had never heard him sound so serious. “But I sure as  _hell_ am not gonna let you win.”

“Come on, guys!” Keith shouted. “Lance won't be able to hold that forever. Let's take all these guys out while we can!”

And then the fight was continuing. He had no idea where Sendak had gone, but after what Lance had done it seemed that they had the upper hand once more. Giants were turning into piles of yellow dust once more. Pidge had opted to turn invisible, and now appeared as a floating celestial bronze dagger that took giants down as it soared through the air. Hunk could decapitate three of them in a row with one swing, as these 'Galra' giants were not quite as large as normal ones, though still intimidating. Allura and Keith were both going on a rampage, and Shiro and Matt had been fending off the giants around Lance so that he could continue to hold up the river.

Soon enough, the entire giant army had been reduced to piles of yellow dust that quickly blew away in the wind. Keith had just started toward the river bank to confront Zarkon himself, when suddenly there was a startled cry.

Sendak had apparently climbed out of the river, using the dry bank as a cover to sneak up on Lance, who'd been concentrating too hard to notice. He spun Lance around, holding a knife to his throat. “If any of you take a single step, I'll kill him right now.”

Pidge gasped, and Hunk whimpered.

“No... I... why wasn't I paying attention?!” Shiro ran a hand through his hair in frustration, and Matt lay a comforting hand on his shoulder. Allura just looked furious.

Keith couldn't do anything but stare. Lance had tears running down his face. Either from fear or exhaustion, he wasn't sure.

“Drop the water,” Sendak hissed in Lance's ear. “Or you're dead.”

Lance somehow mustered the courage to shake his head.

“Lance...” Pidge's voice was broken. “Just do what he says.”

“This isn't worth you getting killed over,” Hunk agreed.

“ _No_ ,” Lance half-sobbed. “I won't... I won't do it. I can't fail, not when we've made it this far. I can't let you guys down. I can't let him beat us.”

“Lance, winning won't matter if you die,” Allura reasoned. “Please, please think about this. We need you.”

Lance squeezed his eyes shut. “I can't.”

Sendak growled. Then, too fast for anyone to react, he plunged the knife into Lance's stomach, just under his rib cage. He let out a strangled yell before falling silent, eyes slipping shut as blood coated the front of his shirt.

The water of the River Styx fell, submerging Zarkon where he stood.

Keith didn't care.

He was by Lance's side in a second, and cut off Sendak's head with his sword. The giant's form crumbled away, but the damage had already been done.

Lance wasn't even conscious; he must've blacked out from pain. His breathing was heavy, but quickly weakening. Blood had started to drip from the corner of his mouth.

“ _No_ ,” Keith sobbed, shaking Lance as much as he dared. “No,  _please_ ... not like this. Not... I can't... I can't do this again, I... I was supposed to get more  _time_ ...”

“Let me through!” Pidge demanded, pushing the others out of her way. “Lance, Lance, come on, open your eyes. You need ambrosia, you need to heal, but I can't help you if you don't wake up, Lance,  _please_ .”

“None of us are children of Apollo,” Hunk whispered. “None of us have healing magic. We... we can't...”

“Water?” Matt suggested. “Water... might help.”

“His soul...” Shiro was trembling, despite Matt's arm around him. “I can feel it... it's leaving, he's barely holding on. I don't know if we'll be able to save—”

“He's not gone yet!” Allura cut him off, sitting beside Lance. “And I refuse to give up. I'm sorry, this might hurt him, but...” she trailed off, reaching out a tentative hand. Her fingers rested on Lance's chest, and she closed her eyes. “But I'm not losing any more friends to Zarkon.”

_Zap!_

Lance's body convulsed once with the electric shock from Allura's finger tips, and then his eyes were open. He coughed, blood spattering onto the stone ground he rested on.

Pidge was feeding him ambrosia immediately, chanting prayers to every god in existence that he would be okay. Hunk had practically emptied an entire one of their canteens onto Lance's wound, while asking Poseidon to save his son. This combined effort was enough to staunch the bleeding. While still far from healed, with Matt's expert bandaging— from years of practice taking care of Shiro, no doubt— it seemed he would at least live until they could get him to the Apollo cabin at camp.

“What'd... what'd I miss?” he asked, with another small cough, this time blood-free.

Keith couldn't help but find this familiar. Lance waking up after brushing with death. A miracle, it seemed. A gift from the gods.

This time, when Keith hugged him, he had no intention of ever letting go. “You  _idiot_ .” The happy tears falling from his eyes were starting to soak the back of Lance's shirt.

“I'm going to have to agree with Keith,” Pidge tried her best to sound nonchalant, but her own red-rimmed eyes betrayed her. “You shouldn't have risked yourself like that!”

“You almost didn't make it,” Hunk added, voice hushed.

“I couldn't just let him win,” Lance argued. “After everything he's done? To Shiro and Matt? To Allura? To all of us?”

“It appears that I won anyway, though.”

They all tensed, as the giant rose up out of the River Styx, seeming even bigger than before.

Keith kept one arm around Lance, holding out his dagger toward Zarkon with the other. “Don't come anywhere near us, or I  _swear_ on the River Styx that I will kill you. I don't care where your weak spot is. I'll just stab you until I find it.”

Shiro blanched. “ _Keith_ —”

“I already have what I came for,” Zarkon waved a hand at them. “Though it is a shame you destroyed my entire army. Lucky for you, I'll have to wait for them to reform before taking any further action. Even if I could probably kill you all right now where you stand.

“Just  _leave_ ,” Pidge spat. “And stay away from us. Stay away from Lance.”

“Still in denial that your friend will die, I see,” Zarkon sighed. “Well, I suppose you'll all see soon enough.” He disappeared into a puff of smoke.

They all stared at the spot where he'd been standing seconds before. Lance was the first one to speak.

“This is all my fault.”

Allura cast him an apologetic smile. “Don't say that, Lance. You've got to stop being so hard on yourself.”

“But it is!” Lance insisted. “I wasn't able to keep the water up, because... I'm too  _weak_ to use my power and fight at the same time! I'm not a hero, I'm just useless! I let him get away, and he's got what he wants.”

“Lance, you were stabbed,” Pidge said. “How was that your fault?”

“If I'd just been stronger—”

“You're one of the strongest people I know,” Keith blurted out. “Stop blaming yourself for what happened.  _None_ of us were able to stop him. It's not your fault.” Without waiting for a response, he stood, scooping Lance up in his arms. “We've got to get back to camp as soon as we can, Shiro. He's injured.”

Pidge sighed. “And we better tell Coran what happened, too.”

“I'll be able to make the jump for Keith, Lance, and me,” Shiro told them. “I'll talk to Coran, and Keith? Take Lance to the infirmary. The rest of you come as soon as possible by pegasus, okay?”

The others nodded, and Shiro grabbed Keith's hand, melting into the shadows with him and Lance, the latter of whom was already passed out again.

 


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some fluffiness (sort of) and some good old interactions with other characters, because we've been lacking those lately. We're nearing the end of the first work now, guys. I hope you enjoy this chapter!!!

The campfire celebration the following evening was nothing short of extravagant. All seven of them had returned to camp alive, and more or less unharmed. Lance, for his part, was still bandaged up even after help from several Apollo kids, and Matt still wasn't back to full strength, but they were getting there.

It was... strange, to Lance. He'd gone on this quest with the hope to prove himself, but he'd failed. And yet, it didn't seem to matter to the camp. They brought Matt back, and Shiro now had two arms again. The fact that Zarkon had succeeded hung over them, unspoken. Lance didn't want to ruin the good mood, but he couldn't help but turn it over in his head.

It _was_ his fault, he knew. Everyone assured him otherwise, but if Lance had just been strong enough to keep holding the water, or better yet to do something about Zarkon before he had a chance to get this far...

_No use dwelling on it_ , Lance supposed, even if it continued to nag at the back of his mind.  _Better to focus on the future. Worry about what lies ahead._

_Future_ ...

The lines of the prophecy he'd been given appeared unbidden in Lance's mind.

_Two quests will go, and later form one._

This had happened, obviously. With only three people being allowed on quests, they surely would've been asking for bad luck if they'd just stuck together from the beginning.

_Three to search for wisdom's lost son_ .

Once again, obvious. Hunk, Pidge, and Lance had found Matt, a child of Athena, in the clutches of Medusa.

_And three to another realm for a gift_ .

This line had seemed vague at first, but now it made perfect sense. Shiro, after the horrific end to the last quest, needed a blessing from his father. So, he'd traveled there with Allura and Keith to receive it.

_Where seven spark the balance's shift_ .

This part of the prophecy is what started to make Lance uneasy. Sure, there'd been seven of them fighting against Zarkon, but a shift in the balance? They'd failed, which meant this line had been warning them that the odds would end up in the giant's favor. Had Lance been doomed to lose all along?

_ Only to return with ruined success _ .

The following line seemed to answer that question. He supposed the 'ruined success' was what they'd accomplished on their separate missions. After finding Matt and Shiro being granted a new arm, they'd all felt pretty good. But then Zarkon... Zarkon had been able to get the powers of the River Styx. And ruined any sense of accomplishment they might've had.

_To a traitor who wants what the gods possess_ .

This one line bothered Lance the most, without a doubt. Zarkon definitely wanted the power of the gods, but he'd never been on their side to begin with. So how could he be a  _traitor_ ? And the prophecy said they'd be 'returning to' him. Did that mean that Zarkon was somehow at camp? Lance just couldn't shake the feeling that something else would happen, that he shouldn't settle into the false peace. Even if no one else seemed concerned.

“Hey,” Pidge slid onto the bench beside him, eyes seeming to calculate his expression. “You're pretty quiet. Knowing you, that's never a good sign.”

Lance sighed. “It's nothing.”

“Don't lie,” Pidge nudged him with an elbow. “Is how the quest turned out still bothering you? I thought we told you there was nothing more you could have done. Or any of us, for that matter.”

“You did tell me, but there must've been some way to stop him. Was I really destined to fail before the quest even started?”

Pidge shook her head. “You're only thinking of one part of the quest, idiot. You saved my brother's  _life_ . That doesn't sound like a complete and utter failure to me. What do you think?”

“Zarkon still got away. I let him get away.” Lance stared at the ground.

“You didn't  _let_ him do anything,” Pidge said, sounding irritated that he even thought of it that way. “Lance, you nearly got yourself killed trying to stop him. If you think that you're weak because he escaped in the end, you're wrong. You're brave, and strong, and I need you to know that. For me, okay? For all of us.”

Lance looked back up at her, still uncertain. “Okay, but... he's practically invincible. How am I... how are _we_ going to beat him now?”

“Practically isn't totally,” Pidge pointed out. “He has a weakness. We'll find it, and take him down. But for now, don't worry about that. For now, everyone's safe. We're all alive. Why isn't that a reason to celebrate?” She patted his shoulder, and returned to her seat next to her brother, who was roasting three marshmallows at once.

Lance debated going to talk to Hunk, who was always one to lift his spirits, then thought better of it. Hunk and Shay sat, hand in hand, smiling and talking to each other. Lance couldn't help a soft grin of his own.

The entire camp had seen what happened when Hunk, Pidge, Matt, and Allura returned on the pegasi. Immediately after Hunk's feet touched the ground, Shay had stormed out of the crowd. For a moment, Lance thought she might slap him. Instead, she kissed him directly on the lips.

Pidge had snorted, turning to Lance. “ _Finally_ ,” she'd muttered into his ear.

Lance's eyes sought the crowd once more, but... no, Keith and Shiro were talking. It was about something pretty serious, too, as they kept their voices hushed. Shiro cast a pointed look at Lance, who quickly diverted his eyes elsewhere. Were... they talking about him?

In his attempt to make it seem as if he wasn't staring at them, Lance noticed Allura, who sat on a bench by herself, looking into the fire.

Lance plopped down next to her, and she jumped.

“Sorry, didn't mean to scare you, Allura,” he apologized, with a sheepish grin.

“Oh, no, that's quite alright.” She blew a strand of hair out of her face, looking up at him. “What is it?”

“Nothing, really. I was just wondering why you weren't joining in on the celebration?”

She hummed, now twirling the loose strand around a finger. “It's just... I don't know anyone, and they don't know me. I'm... I'm from  _ten years ago_ , Lance. And all my friends from back then are...” she trailed off with a sigh.

“Well, I'm your friend,” Lance told her, choosing his words carefully. He didn't want to upset her more, after all. “And I only got here two weeks before you did. I don't know many more people than you do, but if they can tolerate  _me_ at this point I'm sure they're all going to love you.”

Allura smiled softly. “Thank you, Lance.”

He grinned. “It's no problem. Is there anyone specific you'd like for me to introduce you to? I'd hate for you to be stuck with me blabbering at you all night.”

She snorted. “You're rather nice to talk to, actually. But.... um,” Allura inclined her head subtly, nodding toward a tall, slender girl with thick blonde curls that were pulled into several different pigtails all around her head. An unusual style that she somehow pulled off. Her eyes were an odd shade of purple. She appeared to have snatched several chocolate bars from the s'mores ingredient table. “Do you know her?”

“Nyma?” Lance looked from her to Allura. “Yeah, she's from the Hermes cabin. Best friends with the counselor, Rolo. Why?”

The blush that dusted across Allura's cheeks was barely noticeable. “No reason.”

“Oh my gods,” Lance was grinning like a maniac at this point. He would later realize that was the first time he'd ever used the plural. “Allura. Do you have a  _crush_ ?”

“I don't even know her!” Allura elbowed him. “It's just... well, she's very pretty. And she seems nice. I'd like to... talk to her?”

“Don't get me wrong, I know she's pretty. I used to hit on her all the time back when I was in the Hermes cabin, but she was completely unaffected by my charm.” Suddenly, Lance's eyes lit up. “And so were you! That's it! There's no other explanation. Obviously, you're meant to be together, or my flirting would've worked.”

Allura looked at him doubtfully. “Lance...”

“No, listen! Here's what you're going to do,” Lance put an arm around her shoulders, leaning in to whisper the plan. “You've got to try a pick-up line.”

“What... what's a  _pick-up line?_ ”

Lance gaped. “You've been frozen for ten years, not ten thousand! How do you not— you know what? Never mind,” he rubbed his temples. “Being your wingman is going to be harder than I thought. But I'm up for the challenge, I think. My services with Hunk are no longer required.”

“Wingman?”

“Alright, just— listen to me.”

Not five minutes later Allura walked up to Nyma, who was still eating her stolen chocolate. She flashed a dazzling grin.

“Is... is your dad a thief?” Allura asked.

Nyma glanced up at her, tilting her head to the side. “Uh? Yeah, Hermes is the god of thieves. Why?” She took another bite of her chocolate bar.

Allura looked uncertainly over at Lance, who gave her a thumbs up. “Oh, I was just wondering who stole all the stars and put them in your eyes. That's all.” With that said, she turned around and rushed back to Lance, who gave her a high-five while laughing hysterically. He glanced back to see that Nyma's face was bright red, and she'd dropped her chocolate. “How did I do?” Allura asked.

“Amazing,” Lance promised. “You were  _amazing_ . I give it a week before the two of you are dating.”

“You know,” Allura smiled at him. “I quite like this 'having a wingman thing.' Is there anyone you have in mind that you'd like me to be your... wingwoman for?”

Lance's eyes found Keith in the crowd again. He had his arms crossed, and appeared to be chewing on a marshmallow somewhat angrily as he stared at the fire.

“Yeah,” Lance found himself saying. “Yeah, maybe.”

 


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Christmas Eve!!! Naturally, I'm posting another chapter for the occasion because it actually fits into my update schedule! I hope you enjoy.

It was the day after the campfire that Lance sat down by himself on the docks, just like he had on that day which now felt like forever ago. He stared out into the water, lost in thought once more. About the prophecy, his quest... everything.

People told him to stop blaming himself for everything that went wrong... and they were right, Lance supposed. Instead of moping and thinking of what could've been, he should plan on what to do next. He'd have to see Coran about talking to the Oracle, trying to get a feel for his next move.

Lance was contemplating this idea when a hand touched his shoulder, shocking him out of his thoughts. He whirled around, more than a little disappointed to find that it was not Keith standing before him, but Lotor.

The other demigod smiled. “Ah, Lance! I'd hoped I could find you here.”

“Lotor,” Lance forced a smile as the son of Aphrodite sat down beside him on the docks. “What're you doing here? I didn't see you at the campfire yesterday, I thought you might be sick?”

“No, no,” Lotor waved a hand. “Was just a bit busy, couldn't make it to the celebration, you know how it is. I just wanted to talk to you, as I haven't gotten a chance since you returned from the quest.”

“Talk to me? Why?”

“Well, I wouldn't have to be a child of Athena to see that you're pretty down in the dumps. And I think I know why that is,” Lotor said, staring out at the lake. “Don't worry, Lance. Even if it's your fault he got away, you can still redeem yourself.”

Lance didn't know what to say to that. Before he could answer, Lotor burst into laughter and elbowed him.

“Oh, don't worry, I'm only kidding,” he told Lance, still chuckling. “Of course it wasn't your fault. From what I hear, it's a miracle you're even alive. There is no cause worth dying for.”

“I don't know,” Lance tapped a finger to his chin. “I think there are lots of things worth fighting for, maybe even dying for. If you're not prepared to die for something, then what can you hope to change?”

Lotor hummed. “A very interesting sentiment, coming from you.”

Lance wrinkled his nose. “What's that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing, of course,” Lotor said. “Just that you're obviously a brave half-blood, and your response to all the pressure being put on you is admirable, in my opinion.”

“Pressure?”

“Yes, of course,” Lotor nodded, eyes still looking out at the horizon rather than at Lance. “You're a child of the Big Three, after all. Very powerful. Not to mention you just got here recently, and had to go on a dangerous quest only around three weeks after showing up. Not many could do what you did and return alive, much less have some success on their quest. To think you accomplished all that with next to no training!”

“I almost didn't come back alive,” Lance reminded him. “And training might've helped me actually stop Zarkon.”

“But you got the son of Athena back to camp,” Lotor pointed out. “In fact, all of you made it home practically unscathed.”

Lance just shrugged. “I guess.”

“Honestly, I don't even know how you manage to keep a level head, with everyone constantly talking about the Great Prophecy, and throwing hints about it at you,” Lotor continued. “It would be enough to drive me crazy. How  _do_ you put up with it all the time?”

Lance almost replied instantly, because it did drive him up a wall. Everyone insinuating that he was some sort of 'Chosen One', or that this mysterious 'Great Prophecy' was about him. The worst part wasn't even the fact that Zarkon had talked about his death more than a few times. It was that Keith seemed to believe him.

But Lance cut himself off, because he'd never mentioned that stuff to anyone, let alone Lotor. Sure, people brought up rumors they'd heard about the the Great Prophecy, but Lotor spoke about it casually. He shouldn't have known anything specific about it, much less that people had brought it up to Lance on the quest, especially Zarkon. Because Lotor wasn't  _on_ the quest.

“I... I don't think I ever said anything about the Great Prophecy, Lotor,” Lance said, hesitant.

Something flashed in Lotor's eyes, and then he spoke. “Of course you did, you mentioned it, just now.” And something in his voice went all sweet, and it made Lance want to listen, want to agree with him—

And just like that, it finally clicked in Lance's head.

“ _You_ ,” he whispered, standing up on shaking legs. “It was  _you_ .”

The voice Lance had heard in his dream, conversing with Zarkon, something familiar he couldn't place. The voice whispering to him in the Underworld... had that been what Lotor instructed Lance to do while manipulating him with charmspeak? His head had felt bleary and foggy that day, too.

A memory came back, from what now seemed like ages ago. They'd been in almost exactly the same spot.

_“You'll remember when I need you to, okay? Now listen closely.” Lance nodded. Lotor grinned and continued speaking.“You're going to go on a quest very soon, one that takes you to the Underworld. When you enter the realm of the dead, you must remember what I tell you now. It is the only way your quest will succeed. I promise, no matter what, you won't be harmed. You have to jump into the pit, Lance, the entrance to Tartarus. If you don't, the quest will fail. You don't want to fail, do you Lance? No? Then you must remember, and do as I say. Go into Tartarus”_

“Lance, what—”

“It was you,” Lance repeated, taking another step backwards. “You're the one that gave Zarkon inside information. You told him about the prophecy, the quest, everything! You nearly made me jump into Tartarus!  _You're the traitor_ !”

Lotor was grinning now. The game was up.

“ _Why_ ?”

“Why? You're asking me why? Zarkon took me in when no one else would! My father abandoned me; my mother was a goddess, and she left me on the streets!” Lotor spat. “He took me in, and so when he decided he wanted the power of the gods, I decided I'd help him! What had the gods ever done for me? Nothing! But Zarkon needed my help to achieve his goal, so of course I agreed! He needed me a hell of a lot more than my real parents! As far as they were concerned, I was useless!”

“He's just using you,” Lance insisted. “He doesn't care about you, he needs someone on the inside of camp to get him what he wants!”

“Maybe so, but do you think the gods are any better?” Lotor asked, getting in Lance's face. “The gods send their children to die on quests they're too lazy to do themselves! And what has your father ever done for you, Lance? He didn't claim you for  _two weeks_ ! Two weeks where you felt miserable, and unwanted! Where was he then?”

“That doesn't matter!” Lance shouted back.

“You could join our side Lance,” Lotor whispered. The smile on his face was bordering on crazed. “Be a part of our team. The gods have neglected all of us, but not for long. Soon, we'll be just as powerful as they are.”

“No,” Lance backed away, but Lotor just took another step toward him. “Power isn't the answer. The way you're going... people are going to get hurt!”

“People are going to be hurt whether you join us or not, Lance.  _You're_ going to get hurt, if you don't join our side! Want to know why everyone keeps hinting about the prophecy? I've read it, and it's right there in the lines. You're going to  _die_ if you try to fight this, Lance. You'll die trying and failing to stop us. It's your destiny. The gods won't help you. Nobody will help you, because they know it's bound to happen.”

Lance felt like he was going to be sick. “No...”

“But,” Lotor pressed on, still walking towards Lance. “If you join us, you can be powerful, too! You can live forever, become a god yourself! Who could ever say no to an opportunity like that! Join us, Lance. With you, the Chosen by our side, how could we lose?”

“I...” Lance stared down at his hands. “I'm going to die anyway, right? Prophecies can't be changed?”

Lotor nodded. “That's right. But if you join us, you can escape that fate.”

“No.” Lance met Lotor's eyes again, gaze cold with determination. “If I'm really the 'Chosen', then I'm the only person who can stop you. I just told you before that there are things worth dying for, didn't I? Well, if my destiny is to die for this... to be the cost of defeating Zarkon, then so be it! If it's in the prophecy, I'll die either way, right? So, who cares? If I know I die, that means that I've got nothing to lose! That means it's just going to be that much harder to beat me!”

Lotor's smile disappeared, gaze turning hard. “I did not spend a decade in the Lotus Hotel, waiting for the Chosen to arrive, for _this_.”

_Lotus Hotel?_ “What?”

“I'm sorry, Lance,” Lotor began. Lance had nowhere else to go, his feet had reached the edge of the dock. “I didn't want to have to use charmspeak on you, but you're giving me no choice.”

Lance debated jumping off the dock, but what would that solve? And he couldn't let Lotor get away if he could help it. But—

His thoughts were interrupted by Lotor's voice, now sweet as sugar. “ _Join us, Lance_ . Join our side.”

And he knew... he knew Lotor was using charmspeak. Deep down, Lance was screaming at himself to say no. But he found himself nodding, a small smile spreading over his face, unable to refuse the offer. Lance was reminded, once again, of how weak he really was. Lotor had been able to simply get him to come with charmspeak from the beginning. He didn't even have a chance.

Then, suddenly, Lotor jumped back with a curse. A dagger was protruding from his shoulder, a familiar silver that only one person in camp used.

“LANCE!”

The spell of the charmspeak was broken, and Lance looked past Lotor to see none other than Keith running towards them down the docks. And he looked furious.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the cliffhanger, but again, it's Christmas Eve. I thought it was appropriate. Two more chapters left of this work!


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SECOND TO LAST CHAPTER OF THIS WORK! And yes, there is going to be a sequel (which I've already started planning/working on, I've actually put a lot of thought into this plot, believe it or not), and hopefully a third one after that to make it a trilogy?
> 
> For now, though, I hope you enjoy this chapter, and can look forward to the final one after you read!

Keith was at Lance's side in an instant, getting between Lotor and him. “Are you okay?” he demanded. “Are you hurt?”

Lance shook his head, placing his hands on Keith's shoulders. To ground them both. “I'm... I'm fine, but Keith... it's him. He used his charmspeak to try and get me to jump into Tartarus... he's working with Zarkon.”

Keith cursed, sword drawn in seconds. “Lance, get behind me, you don't have your bow and he's after you. I should've known, you sounded like you were affected by charmspeak, but... I didn't want to believe it. Lotor and I have never been friendly, but this...”

“Keith, I have no quarrel with a child of Ares,” Lotor said, once again walking towards them. “Just let me take Lance. He's useless to you anyway.”

Keith hesitated for a split second. “Get  _out_ of my head,” he growled. “If you think you can use charmspeak on both of us at once, be my guest. But every kind of godly magic causes exhaustion, and you've already used it plenty. Stand up and fight, if your cause is so admirable. Talking us into joining you would be a coward's move.”

Lotor gritted his teeth, and unsheathed his own sword. Except this one didn't look celestial bronze. If Lance had to guess, it was made of normal steel.

“Like the blade?” Lotor asked, with a grin. “I'm not going to be killing many monsters, so I figured another material might be better to... work with.”

“I'm an idiot,” Lance whispered. “If I had just brought my bow... with the yellow tranquilizer arrow, we could've—”

“No use dwelling on that now,” Keith cut him off. “Lance, go get help. I can hold him off long enough for you to get Coran.”

“You mean... you didn't tell someone else before coming down here? You just ran here without telling anyone, like the reckless idiot you are? And you expect me to go get Coran _now_?”

Keith just glared at him.

“Are you  _crazy_ ?! I'm not leaving you with him alone! He could kill you!”

“Lance, I'll be fine,” Keith dismissed his protests. “You don't even have a weapon, and you're the one he wants, so run! Get Coran, he'll know what to do. I can keep him busy.”

“No! I'm not going to leave you here!” Lance said stubbornly. Lotor looked on with amusement at the argument. “The naiads can get help!” He cast a pointed look at the lake and Flurona swam off, hopefully to notify another demigod to tell Coran.

“Lance, you don't have a weapon,” Keith repeated. “You can't fight. I won't let you.”

“I'm not leaving you by yourself,” Lance insisted, once again. “I'll stay out of the fight, if that's what you want, but I'm not going anywhere.”

“I'm intrigued,” Lotor announced from beside them. “A child of Ares, expressing concern? For someone other than himself, no less. It's a bit out of character.”

Keith said nothing, only lifted his sword a bit higher.

“Then again, you aren't just a child of Ares, are you?” Lotor continued. Keith tensed. “There's blood of the god of death in you. How does it feel to know that your mother incurred the wrath of the gods for leaving the Huntresses of Artemis? She betrayed them, for  _love_ .”

Keith shook his head, eyes going wide. “She... she didn't—”

“But you don't have to make the same mistake, Keith! If you follow in your mother's footsteps and risk everything for love, you'll just end up like she did. Don't put yourself in harm's way for his sake.”

Lance wasn't sure he'd heard right. “ _Love_ ?”

Keith looked like a deer in headlights. “Stop.”

“Did you really think you could keep your feelings from me?” Lotor asked, with a small chuckle. “I'm a child of Aphrodite. I  _know_ .”

Keith was pressing his hands over his ears. “I'm not listening to you.”

“Hey— hey, leave him alone! Shut up!”

“Yes, yes, what a tragedy,” Lotor continued, ignoring both of their protests. “Keith's fallen for the one boy he knows he can't possibly stay with. Because he's the Chosen, isn't he? I can't imagine why you think he'd be able to stop Zarkon, mind you. Do you really believe that Lance can save you? He's absolutely  _worthless_ .”

“Lance is  _not_ worthless,” Keith growled. “Even if he was, why would you want him so bad? Face it, you only want him on your side because you know he can stop you!”

“And why would  _you_ want to stop us?” Lotor asked. “Either of you? Lance, your father didn't claim you for weeks, and even after your quest did he contact you, reward you? Of course not! And Keith, why would you owe the gods anything? They're the reason your mother is dead!”

Keith stared Lotor down. “You're right. I don't owe the gods anything. But I  _do_ owe Lance, and if you think you can so much as touch him without going through me first, you're wrong.”

Lance watched this exchange, unsure what to say.

“Oh, how cute,” Lotor smiled at them. “You think you're  _saving_ him. Tell us, then, Keith. I know what the Great Prophecy says, and I know you've read it, too. You think you can protect him? If he fights for the gods, you and I both know what'll happen.”

Keith froze, looking back over his shoulder at Lance. But all of Lance's attention was centered on Lotor.

“I'd rather die than join you,” he said, plain and simple. Keith's eyes widened.

Lotor shrugged. “Have it your way.” He lunged forward.

Keith shoved Lance back as he rushed to meet Lotor, their blades clashing together. He swung a blade in each hand, but they both had to admit that Lotor knew what he was doing. He used his own weapon with obvious expertise. Someone less experienced than Keith would've been bested near instantly.

Even so, despite Keith's two weapons opposed to Lotor's one, the son of Ares was at an obvious disadvantage.

He had someone to protect.

Keith was forced to block and counter attacks directed not only at him, but at Lance as well. Lance realized the consequences of this quickly, and he couldn't just let it continue. Surely, there was something he could do other than just stand powerless as Keith fought.

Lance's eyes snagged on the lake, and he hesitated. He didn't know how to manipulate water with control yet. What if he ended up hurting Keith? And it had made him really exhausted the last time...

But all the resolve he needed he got when Lotor landed a blow on Keith, sword plunging deep into his arm and forcing him to drop one of his swords. Blood spattered across the dock, and Lotor raised his weapon again to strike—

And then Lance was there, hands outstretched, a shield of water forming a bubble to protect them both. The tugging sensation in his stomach when he manipulated water was beginning to feel natural. Lotor's sword merely bounced off the surface, harmlessly. Keith stared at the makeshift shield.

“Lance... I didn't know you could do that,” he whispered in awe.

Lance shot a grin at him over his shoulder. “Me neither.” He turned back towards Lotor, and, with a flick of his wrists, sent the water from the bubble expelling outward, crashing into Lotor like a wave and sending him sprawling onto the docks. “Try that again, I  _dare_ you.”

Before Lotor even had the chance to stand up, Lance had trapped him in a bubble of his own, except this one was filled with water. He struggled against it, but Lance kept his fists clenched, keeping the other demigod locked in place.

After a few moments he released the water, dumping Lotor back onto the dock unceremoniously, sopping wet and coughing to get air into his lungs. He struggled to push himself up onto his elbows.

Keith started towards him, raising his sword. “Let's finish this.”

Lance grabbed his arm. “Keith, wait. This isn't some monster. Lotor... he wouldn't reform.” Keith froze in his tracks. “Let me.”

“We can't possibly let him go, and he's going to escape pretty quickly if we try to keep him here, charmspeak and all,” Keith warned him, then sighed. “But... you're right. We can't kill him, either.”

“You'll have to,” Lotor said, voice still raspy. “I won't ever come with you alive. And even if you do manage to lock me up somewhere, I'll escape. Who knows, maybe then I'll be able to bring some of your friends with me. Or their bodies, at least. Say, maybe it'd be better if I didn't take Lance alive! I mean, think about it. I'd just be speeding up the inevitable, right? Why put it off any longer?”

And Keith  _snapped_ .

Before Lance could even register what was going on, Keith was on top of Lotor, hitting and hitting and  _hitting_ —

“Keith! Keith,  _stop_ !” Lance cried, grabbing Keith's arm before he could punch Lotor again. He'd already earned a split lip, and had blood running from his nose. Lance could see the beginnings of bruises on his face. “Keith, this won't solve anything. I'm fine, okay?”

“I know,” Keith whispered. “I... I know that it won't help, but when he says things like that... when he talks about  _killing_ you like it's nothing... I just see it in my head and I can't... I can't get rid of the image. Of... you. Dead.”

Lance's face softened, but he took a step towards Lotor anyway, moving past him. “We're not going to kill you, Lotor. I won't. You're a demigod, just like us, and I think that one day, you'll realize that we should be on the same side. You are  _better_ than this.”

Lotor coughed, spitting blood onto the dock. “I'm not the one who should be changing sides,” he said. “Lance, there's nothing for you here. Just think, with us you can be free. You do want to see your family again, don't you?”

“My family...” Lance got a far-away look in his eyes. “You're right. I do want to see them. But the people here have become my family, too. And if, for some reason, they need me, then you can be sure as Hades that I won't let them down. I'm just sorry _you_ weren't able to find family here.”

Before Lotor could respond there was a puff of smoke, and a cloaked woman appeared behind him, gathering the injured demigod up into her arms. She stared at the other two with a pair of glowing yellow eyes that Lance knew.

“The Oracle?”

Haggar shook her head. “I will serve the gods no longer. I have looked into the future, demigods. I have seen all there is to be seen, I know all there is to be known. You should've thought better about what you chose today. I would not want to have a future like  _yours_ , son of Poseidon. Much suffering awaits you.”

Lance gulped, searching for something to say. But he came up empty.

“As for you, son of Ares,” Haggar stepped forward, pressing what appeared to be a small piece of folded paper into Keith's right hand. He sucked in a breath. “I trust you know what this is. I have no more use for it, and I will tell no more prophecies. But this is one you shall need.”

Keith was staring down at the little scrap of paper, looked beyond panicked. Lance's eyes narrowed, but neither of them said anything more. Haggar once again vanished into thin air, taking Lotor with her.

 


	24. Chapter 24

Coran had arrived at the dock only seconds after Haggar left. Lance had recounted the events and seen that Keith's shoulder got treated to, but the son of Ares simply sat on the edge of the docks, much as Lance often did. The scrap of paper was still clutched firmly in his hands, and he made no move to look anywhere but at the horizon.

Coran didn't linger long, though; he had to discuss what had happened with Iverson, notify the other campers. Soon enough it was just the two of them once more. Lance sat next to him, sighing a little as he stuck his feet in the water. “So,” he began, looking over at his friend. “You ever going to tell me what that paper says on it?”

Keith froze, his feet stopping mid-sway. “You... you're sure you want to know?”

Lance hummed, propping himself up on his arms and staring at the sky. “It's the Great Prophecy, right? The thing everyone keeps mentioning to me, and yet no one's explained. I feel like maybe I should know it.”

Keith stared down at the surface of the lake. “You're right. You deserve to know. Just... please, don't hate me?”

Lance's grin at his success melted away. “What? Keith, I don't think I could ever really hate you, at this point.”

Somehow, this only seemed to make Keith sadder. “I know.” He took a deep breath, and began to recite. Slowly, as if each word hurt him to say.

“ _A child of the sea with a golden bow_

_Stands with five in the giant's shadow_

_Sword, dagger, axe, whip, and shield_

_Fight against a fate already sealed_

_The beast who strives to avoid death_

_Stopped or aided by the half-blood's last breath.”_

Lance felt the lump in his throat even before he tried to speak. “Last breath, huh?”

Keith looked down again. “You're going to die, Lance.”

Lance couldn't think of anything to say to that. Anxiously, Keith glanced at him.

“And I wish I could've told you sooner,” he continued. “I wish I _did_ tell you sooner, because now I feel like I've been lying to you this entire time, but... the second I heard you were a son of Poseidon, I knew it had to be you. The one we'd been waiting for. But I read this when I was younger, and so I knew you had to die. Everyone I ever care about ends up dead and... I didn't want to, I _couldn't_ get attached to you just to lose you again. And that's why I pushed you away, and I'm sorry, but I ended up getting attached anyway. And now I'm... I'm so _scared_ of you, Lance. I'm terrified that one of these close calls is going to turn into a time where you weren't quick, or skilled, or lucky enough to make it through. And... I know this is selfish, but I'm scared for me, too. I... Zeus, I've known you for a month and I... I already feel like I can't live without you.”

Lance blinked. He didn't think Keith had ever said so much to him at once before.

It was strange. Lance knew he should feel scared. But he wasn't. In reality, he'd accepted the fact that he could die long ago. A small part of him knew that's what everyone was hinting at all along. After all, he wasn't stupid.

Of course, he was sad. Sad he might not be able to see his family again, sad that he'd be losing the first real friends he'd ever had. But at the same time... he wasn't scared. He was _ready_.

If anything about this scared Lance, it was how easily he found he could wrap his brain around it.

But Keith was obviously terrified out of his mind, so Lance smiled and put a hand on his shoulder. “Keith,” he said softly. “You know what Coran always says. All prophecies have double meanings. Maybe it isn't what it sounds like.”

Keith glared at him, but there was no real anger behind it. “It says 'half-blood's last breath', Lance. What else could that possibly mean?”

Lance shrugged. “Maybe they'll make me a god instead of Zarkon! If I'm immortal, I wouldn't need to breathe.”

Keith raised an eyebrow. “You'd _want_ to be immortal?”

“Of course not,” Lance shook his head immediately. “Honestly, I think dying might be better than having to live forever and watch everyone I care about die instead.”

Keith just frowned. “I wish you wouldn't say things like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like you're completely okay with the idea of you dying,” Keith said. “I just hate it when you do that. Are you not even going to _try_ to make it through this?”

“Keith, it's a prophecy,” Lance pointed out. “You've been here a lot longer than I have. Has anyone ever been able to avoid what was told in a prophecy?”

Keith made a sound that was something like a sob, and Lance couldn't help but feel surprise. “We have to try _,_ ” he insisted. “You can't just give up. You can't.”

“Woah, hey,” Lance scooted closer to him. “Who said anything about giving up? I am many things, but Lance McClain is _not_ a quitter. I'm not just going to throw my life away on purpose. If I die, I die, but that doesn't mean I'm going down without a fight. You know me, I'll always go down swinging.”

Keith sniffed. “You promise?”

“Promise. In fact,” Lance made a motion of crossing his heart. “I swear it on the River Styx.”

Keith snorted, in spite of everything. “Lance, if you break it there won't be any consequences, because you'll already be _dead_.”

“What, so my solemn word means nothing to you?” Lance clutched his chest. “I'm _wounded_.”

“You're not wounded, _I'm_ wounded.” Keith pointed to the bandage on his arm, and Lance couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled up his throat. “But... thank you. For promising.”

“Only if you promise to stick by me this time,” Lance shot back. “No pushing me away. Not anymore. We've been through too much together for that. After all, I'm going to need you in this thing, right?”

“What?”

“'Sword, dagger, axe, whip, and shield', right? Sounds like I'm going to need all my friends by my side for this one. And who's a better swordsman than you?” Lance asked, with a grin. “So, we're in this together from now on. Deal?” He held out his hand.

Keith scoffed, and took it. But, instead of shaking, he simply held on, and pretended not to notice the blush that colored Lance's cheeks. “I don't think I have a choice but to stick with you from this point on, anyway. You do a lot of stupid things when I'm not around. Though... I guess the same could be said for me, right?” He cast a quick glance at Lance, who nodded. “I said I'd always be there. And I meant it.”

“Me too,” Lance's voice was so soft, Keith could barely hear it. “I meant it, too. I can't promise to know what's going to happen, but at least we know we'll be together. And that's what matters, really. After all, I'm still here now.”

“You have no _idea_ how glad I am that you are,” Keith whispered. He leaned forward slightly, almost subconsciously, and suddenly Lance's face was only inches from his. They stared at each other like that for a moment, looking directly into each other's eyes.

It was Lance who closed the distance in the end, shutting his eyes and pulling Keith towards him in one quick motion, then pressing their lips together. He pulled away nearly just as fast. Keith had barely had time to close his eyes, much less reciprocate. His eyes were wide and sparkling, his cheeks bright red.

“S-sorry!” Lance stammered out. “I don't know why I—”

Keith shut him up by grabbing Lance by the collar of his shirt and pulling him close once again, kissing him back with so much force and enthusiasm that it sent both of them toppling off the dock.

They were soaked for a split second, then a bubble of air formed around them, instantly drying them off. Both were breathing rather heavily.

“Well,” Lance broke the silence at length, once it seemed obvious Keith wasn't going to. “Lotor was right about one thing.”

Keith's gaze snapped up. “What?”

Lance smirked. “You _so_ love me.”

Keith's face flared bright red again. “I have my blade with me,” he warned.

Lance stuck his hands up in surrender. “Okay, okay! No need to resort to weapons, the feeling's totally mutual! As you could probably tell from... well... _that_.”

“What... what does this mean, for us?”

“I don't know,” Lance admitted. “I haven't... I haven't really done this sort of thing before. But... I like it, whatever this is. Whatever it means.”

“Me too.” Keith seemed to think over something for a moment. “Hey, you said Coran was going to notify the other campers soon, right?” Lance nodded. “Well, they might come here, and they're probably going to ask a lot of questions, and... do you want to stay down here in the bubble for a little while? Together? Just... I don't know if I'm ready to talk about the prophecy with anyone else yet.”

Lance grinned, moving so he could sit right next to Keith. “I did promise you we'd stick together, didn't I? Of course we can. Always.”

Keith sighed, leaning his head on the other's shoulder. “Right. Always.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there we have it! The final chapter of the first work! Notice this is just the first of three (planned) works in the series, and there should be more to come soon as I've already started working on the sequel. That's why certain things didn't happen until this chapter; namely the kiss and the reveal of the Great Prophecy.
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed reading this chapter/this first work in general, and I hope you're still going to be along for the ride as this series continues. I know I had so much fun writing it, hearing all your feedback, some people even drew art for this AU which is... honestly living the fic author's dream.
> 
> I'm not going to spoil any of the second work but... I think you guys have cause to be excited for it.
> 
> I seriously cannot thank all of you who have stuck around for this long enough. The positive response of writing this has been overwhelming, and it's inspired me to want to do more multi-chapter things for the VLD characters. Regardless, I should stop rambling. So, thank you, and see you soon with the next installment of this AU!

**Author's Note:**

> Just so you guys know, pretty much everyone is gonna be in this. They're also a bit younger than they are in the show for this AU to make sense, but I'll give you everyone's ages later on. Keith and Lance are both fifteen, though (this is the June before their sixteenth birthdays).
> 
> I chose to post the first chapter today because it's Percy's birthday, and it's Day 6 of whump week- poison! Sorry for the cliffhanger.


End file.
